


Caelestis Malady

by evieva



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alien Planet, Aliens, Allura has an Altean sickness with only one cure, Bonus Episode, Canon Universe, Developing Relationship, Episode 6.5, F/M, M/M, Minor Violence, Mission Fic, Multi, Post-Season 2, the Team has to retrieve it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2018-10-14 12:47:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10536759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evieva/pseuds/evieva
Summary: When the backbone of Team Voltron, Princess Allura, comes down with an illness, it is the team's job to retrieve a cure; and the only cure available is found on a rogue planet known for the shape-shifting swindlers, the Cizer.  To successfully and safely complete this mission, the team is separated into squads of two. Shiro and Coran stay aboard the Castle of Lions to make sure Allura is safe, while Lance, Keith, Hunk, and Pidge are sent out in the late hours of the night to search for the elusive Citzeret flower in the treacherous, fog-filled, forests of Falgea.On three separate adventures, who will find the flower and save the princess? Who will be bamboozled into believing a Cizer clone is their team partner? What happens when a sickness turns into a survival game?





	1. Pilot

**Author's Note:**

> This started out as another Klance idea/adventure like my last one, but it just expanded to an entire episode with multiple chapters and POVs. I wanted to cover all the bases on what's happening with Allura while she's sick, what's going on with Pidge and Hunk, as well as Keith and Lance because I love every character in this show. I honestly just love writing these stories and 'episodes' because they're fun, adventure-y, and I get to include my ships while sticking with the canon plot~ c: 
> 
> I think there's gonna be 10 chapters, but just in case there's more, I'll leave the number as a '?'. If you're only interested in the Klance chapter/the Shallura chapters, I've labeled them differently according to the stories. 
> 
> \- KEY -  
> Klance chapters: Hips Don't Lie  
> Pidge & Hunk chapters: Bumps in the Road  
> Shallura chapters: More than a Malady
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy the pilot that introduces the Klance chapters and the first three others~~

Non-stop arguing for 14 hours straight. That’s what was happening in the Castle of Lions. And, for once? Neither Lance  _nor_ Keith were the cause. This time? Allura. She was picking a fight with  _every single individual_ in the ship. Even the mice. What was it about? Everything and nothing.

It started slowly, with little nitpicky things. Lance, sit up straight, Keith, go take a bath, Pidge, stop playing with your food. And these little  _nothings_ turned into  _giant_ somethings. With no explanation. She’d blow up, disappear, and come back as though  _nothing_ happened. It was almost like a different person came and went in the  _same_ body. And things were getting extremely unsettling.

Mostly because Coran had woken each paladin up after hours when the princess was asleep and invited them to the main deck for a ‘chat’.

“Lance. Lance, wake up.”

“Ten more minutes, mom…” Lance mumbled, rolling over.

“I’m not your mother, Lance.” At this, Lance lifted his sleeping mask and jumped upon seeing a full-fledged mustache in his face. Coran was standing over him, his dark eyes shining in the fluorescent light that saturated the blue paladin’s room. Lance wondered if there was some kind of emergency. He glanced around his room. It wasn’t on fire, flooded, or filled with Galra soldiers, so nothing important enough to wake him up from his beauty sleep was going on. So, what?

“What’s so important?” Lance drawled and blinked blearily at the engineer as he sat up on his elbows.

“Urgent meeting on the main deck.” Coran clapped his hands twice. “Come now, hurry, hurry.”

Lance groaned and plopped back down on his bed, exhausted. He was about to fall back asleep when Coran appeared in the doorway again. “Hurry, hurry!” He clapped again.

“I’m hurrying! I’m hurrying...”

 

* * *

 

 

“Alright, Coran, what’s this about?” Shiro asked, crossing his arms. Obviously, he hadn’t been sleeping, unlike Lance who was very peeved about being awake. The rest of the kids surrounding him were yawning and rubbing their eyes—even Pidge, the slumber-siker extraordinaire, had a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. But not Shiro. He was wide awake.

“I’m sure you all know why I have gathered you here.” The redhead Altean said, mysteriously twirling his mustache. Lance wondered if there was some kind of Altean coffee that kept this man so lively. 

There was a silence, then Lance perked up to answer, “...no.”

“You don’t!?” Coran blinked, obviously surprised.

“It’s the middle of the night.” Hunk mentioned. “Well, our night. The middle of…” he yawned,  “... _sleep-time_.”

“Oh, yes, well...it’s about the Princess.”

“You mean  _Miss Contentious?_ ” Lance pronounced. He chuckled dryly. “It’s about time we get and explanation. She’s not acting very...normal.”

“I’m glad you noticed because our princess is experiencing... _caelestis malady…_ ” Coran whispered the last words, as though the princess could hear him.

“Caelestis, what now?” Keith raised an eyebrow.

“That...sounds like a disease—is it contagious? Cause, I don’t want to get space sickness.” Pidge finally spoke up. She had been yawning nonstop since she joined the team on deck—maybe she was finally waking up.

“Well...in a  _way_ it is...but it’s only known to affect Altean females.”

Hunk sighed, “That’s a relief.”

“Um...so can it be cured?” Shiro asked, raising a questioning hand like he was in class. A model student—he was asking the right questions.

“That’s the dilemma…” Coran pressed his lips together. “With what we have on the ship...no…”

The group each collectively reacted to this response in different versions of shock.  _No cure?_ What did that mean? Was Allura gonna  _die_?

“Now, now—I didn’t mean to alarm you. I’m not trying to say there’s absolutely  _no_ cure—there is—but we have to make a stop to pick it up.” Coran made his way over to the computer at the center of the deck. He tapped it awake and up appeared a holographic image of a flower. At least Lance thought it was a flower. An alien flower.

“This flower is called the Citzeret,” The Altean started, “and what’s so special about a Citzeret flower is that it has the ability to create copies of the individual who breathes in its pollen.”

“Sounds like an allergy attack to me,” Lance commented. Keith elbowed him.

“Actually, the process Altean’s  _used_  to use was designed to pull out the malady as a physical form and engage in hand-to-hand combat with it!” Coran elaborated with exaggerated movements that mimicked a fight. “So, it can be considered an attack of sorts.”

“Told ya,” Lance smirked at Keith before realizing just how horrifyingly  _epic_ that sounded. “Wait, wait, wait—you’re telling me that if I ‘stop and smell the roses’, I could fight my  _evil self_!?”

“Yes,” The redhead responded, enthusiastically nodding his head. “But that process was later found too dangerous as many died in the process. So, a  _new_ way was discovered!”

“And when...was that?” Shiro questioned.

“Hmm…” Coran hummed as he counted on his fingers. “Maybe...10,800 years ago?”

Lance didn’t have to ask to know everyone else was thinking the same thing.  _That's not very long ago considering…_

“Anyhow, it was found out that if you ate the  _petals_  instead, it would fully reverse the effects of the caelestis malady.” He finished with an affirmative nod.

“And...what kind of side effects are expected if we  _don't_ get this flower…?” Pidge asked, adjusting her glasses.

“At the moment, Princess Allura is at stage one, which is ballistic anger. This is soon followed by stage two, which can range from severe mood swings, insomnia, or agonizing pain. These vary per individual, but in special cases, they can all happen at once. Going down the line to stage three, the final stage, there have been cases of uncontrollable shape-shifting that results in said victim transforming into a grotesque monster with no recognizable features or, in other cases, death.”

Everyone was silent once more, not a sound coming from any of them.

“I really wish you didn't ask that, Pidge…” Hunk carped, clasping his hands together nervously.

“How’d she even  _catch_ a disease like that?” Keith asked right after Hunk broke the silence. Lance had been wondering the same thing.

“Oh, you don't catch it. All Altean females go through it. It challenges their strength and willpower! It's part of growing up.” Coran said, swaying on his toes.

“Hey, that's like what girls on earth h—” Lance started, but Shiro interrupted.

“No, Lance. It's nothing like what girls on earth have.” Lance lowered his expression.

“It  _kinda_ is.” He pouted.

“I've already changed our course to the planet that harbors the Citzeret flower. It's your mission to retrieve it before the princess’s symptoms are too critical.” Coran played with the buttons on the computer, pulling up different articles in Altean. An image of a stout, amphibious-looking creature appeared. “This is a Cizer. They, much like their foliage, can shape-shift. However, they're swindlers. They can turn into and act just like your closest comrade and you’d never be the wiser. They will do anything and everything to make you believe them so they can gobble you up for a nice, tasty meal.”

“Pbbt, easy! I could identify an imposter of anyone in this room.” Lance bragged, crossing his arm.

Keith scoffed next to him. “I think I could identify  _you_ pretty easily too. The aliens probably have a few more brain cells than you.”

“Oh, yeah!?” The blue paladin got up in Keith’s face, so close their noses almost touched. “Well, I could identify  _you_ because the aliens would probably have a better  _haircut_!”

Lance squinted as he gazed into Keith’s deep navy eyes while he just stared back; unwavering, like Lance was barely a threat.

Coran cleared his throat and Lance used it as a queue to back away from Keith, although he wasn’t finished yet. “It's important for you to be on guard around these creatures because they  _are_  very clever. They can learn things about you  _you_  didn't even know were true. You'll need to go in pairs to scour the Cizer swamps to find the flower.”

“Coran, we’re kind of an odd number...are  _you_  coming?” Shiro asked.

“No, I can't. I have to stay on board with the princess. My thinking was that, Shiro,  _you_ could stay,” Coran nodded to the black paladin, “while the others go.”

Shiro’s eyes widened and he put a hand on his chest. “ _Me?_ ”

“Yes, I think you have a strong mental fortitude which I could use in my favor. Princess Allura will more than likely be asking for things we cannot provide. It would be your job, as well as mine, to refuse her.” Coran approached Shiro and patted his shoulder as though it was already settled they were a team.

“No worries, Coran, we can handle this  _no_ problem,” Lance stated, confidently.

“Who are the teams?” Keith asked.

“I thought this a good bonding opportunity. And since you're both so  _certain_  you could recognize each other so easily, I was thinking we could put that to the test.” Coran winked.

“Wait,  _I’m_ paired with  _Keith_!?” Lance cried. This reaction would have had a better effect had Keith not said the  _exact_  same thing at the  _exact_ same time in vice-versa.

“You certainly...had this planned out, Coran…” Hunk pointed out.

“When I started noticing the Princess’s symptoms, I knew I had to do something, so I secretly re-routed our course a bit so we could pass this planet by.” The Altean grinned, proudly. “Now, go on, get changed! We haven't much time!”

Most of the paladins turned to start on their way out, all except for Lance, who lingered since he  _had_  to complain more. “Wait, wait—I must have some sort of Altean space disease too cause, I must be losing my mind— _you_ paired  _me_ with  _Keith_?”

“Yes. Go on now. We haven't got all night.” Coran shooed him off with the flick of his wrist.

Lance trudged toward the door, but Shiro stopped him before he got there. “Please play nice. And play it safe.”

“ _I'll_  play nice if  _he_  does.”

 

* * *

 

 

Lance, Keith, Hunk, and Pidge flew their lions down to the ground of the bizarre planet that seemed to only be made up of red plants and fog. It was nearly impossible to see the ground—only the tops of trees could be seen through the thickness of the mist filling every crevice.

With Coran on their headsets guiding them, it wasn’t as hard as Lance thought it would be to find a place to land. The blast of their lion’s exhausts cleared a small area of the fog, so Lance could see patches of dark grass and dirt. The entire planet screamed ‘spooky’. It was like a horror movie. And with Keith as a partner, even more so. Good thing he was a pretty boy—they always die first. Or was it the funny one’s who die first…? Since Lance was both, did that mean…

No more thinking.

“Everyone set?” Coran asked. The transmission crackled a bit, but each paladin was able to respond. “Good. Uh, one thing before you go...it appears a signal to the Castle of Lions will be difficult to find when you’re not  _in_  your lions. There’s some kind of interference.”

“It could be all this freaky fog down here…” Hunk responded. “It’s so thick I don’t think we’ll be able to see through it.”

They were in a safe kind of circle from the mist, but as Lance watched, he noticed it slowly crawling back into the clearing they had made. Hunk was right about the ‘freak’ factor the fog had. It was almost like it was alive.

“Well, seeing as I won’t be able to contact you much, shall we run through the plan one more time?” Coran asked. Before anyone could answer, the Citzeret flower appeared in front of Lance’s eyes. “You are collecting this flower. It would be wise to disregard every other plant since we do not know the effects they have on earthlings. Keep your helmets on at all times, don’t breathe in the toxins, and avoid the Cizer creatures.”

“Geez, Coran, anything else you forgot to mention?” Pidge questioned, with a sarcastic scoff.

“Hmm...now that you mentioned it, there’s another flower that looks rather similar to the Citzeret.” Lance furrowed his brow as a flower that looks  _exactly_ like the Citzeret appeared on screen.

“Coran!” Everyone groaned.

“Oh, don’t worry! There’s a very easy way to tell if the flower is real or not.” Coran explained, and Lance felt his heart sigh. At least there was  _some_ good news. “These flowers are traps set by the Cizer. The Cizer set these up because they know how valued the Citzeret is.  They will most likely rope you up in Boa Vines—the Cizer’s famous weapon. This was an additional reason I thought partners were very important because you will definitely need help getting out of those.”

“This keeps getting better and better…” Keith mumbled on the mic.

“So what? We have to set off the traps to figure out if they’re...you know... _boobied_?” Lance tried, raising his brow.

“Yes—simply touching the flower will do.” The redhead concluded and the sigh of relief Lance released earlier was quickly sucked back in. Altean’s really had a way to make every  _major_ problem seem like a minor inconvenience. “Right-o! That should be all! Good luck paladins, and, teammates? Stick together!”

Everyone confirmed their orders (with no small amount of enthusiasm) and exited their lions. When Lance got down to the ground, the fog had almost engulfed the clearing again. It came up to his waist so he felt like he was wading into a lake. “Anyone other than me and Hunk concerned about this... _gloom…_ ” Lance waved a hand in the white murkiness, disturbing it.

“My only concern is visual,” Keith responded. “I don’t know how we’re supposed to even find our way _through_  thislet alone find a flower in it.

“Well, we’re not gonna have a chance if we don’t start. The princess will wake up in a few hours. We should get going.” Pidge said, hoisting the specimen packs she received from Coran on the ship. Each team had one, and Lance wondered why  _Pidge_ was carrying her teams. Lance knew why  _he_ was carrying his—he’d lost to Keith in rock-paper-scissors. Lance huffed, adjusting the strap on his shoulder.

“Lance and I will go West—you two should go East,” Keith suggested. Lance rolled his eyes. What was he? A compass?

“Sure, I mean—I like the East. The sun rises in the East.” Hunk said, helping Pidge onto his shoulders. So that’s why the green paladin was carrying the specimen pack. “Not that this planet has a sun. We’re on a rogue planet. Which is  _super_ cool, by the way. But it’s pretty dark...”

“Yeah, whatever. I’m more interested in getting  _off_ this rogue planet and rescuing a princess.” The blue paladin declared, puffing his chest. “That’s why I’m gonna be the first to find the flower and get  _all_ the praise for it.”

Pidge scoffed, patting Hunk on the head. “Sure thing, Lance. Why not instead of wagering to see who gets the flower first, we see who gets  _separated_  first. Cause it’ll probably be you two.”

“Oh, yeah! Well, you’re cheating! I can’t ride on  _Keith’s_ shoulders.” Lance complained, jabbing a thumb behind him at the red paladin in question.

“I wouldn’t  _let_ you.” Keith said, obviously bothered he wasn’t included in a conversation about him when he was standing  _right there._

“Point made.” The brunet cracked, frowning at the red paladin. “You’ve got it easy, Pidge. If I had Hunk for a partner, we’d  _never_  get separated. We’re practically joined at the hip already!”

“All the more reason for you to get  _just_ as close with Keith. It’s bonding time, buddy.” Pidge gave a smug smile. “Let’s go, Hunk.”

“Sorry, Lance.” Hunk smiled, sympathetically.  The blue paladin pouted as he watched them start their trek into the forest. He mumbled impudently before turning back to  _his_  mission partner. Keith was waiting patiently for Lance’s fit to stop, crossing his arms and leaning on the right side of his hips. A quirk Lance had noticed from their time together. Whenever Keith crossed his arms, he stuck his hip out. And only on the right side. It was like, for Keith, these two gestures were  _incapable_  of being mutually exclusive.

When Keith didn’t stop staring, Lance asked: “What?”

“You don’t seem to remember why we’re here. You’re just standing there.” The red paladin raised an eyebrow. Lance raised his eyebrow like Keith was but crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue, immaturely. Something he did to his siblings when they were being smart with him. To his surprise, Keith returned the gesture, which made Lance cheer up a bit. Just a little.

“You look pretty stupid, making that face.” Lance teased with a grin. Another thing he would do to his siblings. Keith looked like he wanted to say something but closed his mouth with a groan.

“Whatever, let’s go.”

Keith led the way to the edge of the red forest, waving his hand in an attempt to clear away some of the fog. His hand accidentally hit a large, tropical-looking leaf which, for a special alien reason no doubt, caused it to light up. The fog around it disappeared suddenly, and Lance’s eyes widened.

“The heck..?” Lance whirled around and waved his arms wildly, trying to find some more plants. Both of his arms hit several and the fog level dropped once more. “Hey, cool! So if we make friends with the plants, we’ll be able to see better?”

“I don’t think hitting them will make us many friends,” Keith commented, inspecting his hand.

“Hey, Hunk, Pidge—you seen what these plants can do yet?” Lance offered over the headset in his helmet. He hoped the signal in their helmets could still reach the other paladins, even if it couldn’t reach Coran.

“Yeah, Pidge s—probably—he—careful not to—too ma—ny.” Hunk’s message was extremely broken, so Lance could barely understand it.

“Could you hear what he said?” Lance looked at Keith.

“Something about...not touching the plants? I didn’t get the first part.”

“Hunk, could you repeat the first part?” Lance responded. He waited for a reply, but none came. “Hunk?”

After another moment of silence, Keith said, “Guess he can’t hear us.”

“What’s up with this fog, man? It’s eating our signal like spaghetti.” Lance waved his hand in it again. It created a hole in the mist, but pointlessly—it formed back together in an instant.

“I don’t know...but I think I know what Hunk was trying to tell us.” The red paladin turned to look back at the plant which was still illuminating and driving off the fog. “If we set off too many of these, we’re basically leaving a trail of breadcrumbs. We might get followed.”

“Well, is there a way to test how long these stay lit?” The brunet asked, maybe regretting hitting those other plants.

“Not sure.” Keith shrugged, furrowing his brow.

Lance put a hand to his chin, trying to think of a way they could get through the forest without leaving a trace. When he remembered how the fog dispersed when the plant lit up, he got an idea. “Hey, Keith, do me a favor—cut off a leaf for me.”

“...why?”

Lance tutted, “For a souvenir—could you just  _humor_  me for a sec!?”

“Fine! Fine…” Keith knelt next to the plant and summoned his bayard with a sigh. It transformed into a sword and he used it to slice off the stem. He stood up with it, offering it to Lance, who took it.

“Thank you.” He said, flatly. Lance turned to their chosen path and was happy to see his theory was correct. The light from the plant, for some reason, cleared any fog near it.

“Woah…” Keith marveled. Lance smiled at him.

“Couldn’t tell you how it works—but it does.” Lance shrugged, “Let’s get going.”


	2. More than a Malady - 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First Shallura chapter~~ 
> 
> Enjoy!

Shiro stood dutifully outside of Allura’s bedroom door, as per Coran’s orders. He still wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen if he didn't, but Coran said it was important. And since Shiro was in no position to disagree, outside the door he stayed.

He secretly hoped Allura would stay asleep the rest of the night (despite the fact that Coran almost guaranteed she wouldn’t) and they would have time to find and give her the cure.

But he had a bad feeling it wouldn't work out that well. And, sadly, his bad feelings were usually right.

And, again, he could not argue with a space sickness he knew nothing about.

Shiro only wished he could be on the ground with the other paladins right now. It seemed out of order that he wasn't. He was the leader, after all, and it made him anxious he wasn’t with them. But if he was needed elsewhere, that's where he'd be.

Shiro jumped, for there was a sudden bang that came from inside Allura’s bedroom. Now, Coran said _not_ to enter her room under _any_ circumstances until he came back. But what if she was hurt? Or hurting herself? Just checking on her wouldn't be too bad, right?

Shiro knocked before the door slid open. “Princess? Is everything okay?” The black paladin ducked as an object suddenly flew toward his head and out the door.

“No, everything is _not_ okay,” Allura replied as she threw open a drawer. Shiro glanced around her room. Furniture was knocked over and the sheets on her bed were a mess. “I can’t find it.”

“Can't find what?” Shiro asked, gently.

“My earring! It's missing!” She slammed the drawer shut after rummaging through and disorganizing its entirety. “I had it when I fell asleep, I woke up just now and it was gone.”

“I'm sure you can find it tomorrow. You should rest, Princess.” The paladin offered.

“No! No, no, no! I'll never find it if I don't find it _now_!” The Princess fussed. Shiro had never seen her so unreasonably restless. She's pulled all-nighters before, but it showed. Now? It looked like she hadn't fallen asleep and didn't plan to. Despite the nightdress, she was as awake as though she'd never gone to bed.

“Are you going to help, or just stand there!?” Allura hollered, swinging her arms at Shiro as though he was the one being ludicrous.

“Oh, sorry, sure…” Shiro moved farther into the room. Further into the lion's den.

Shiro started at her bed, lifting up her pillows and sheets. Her sheets were cold—how long had she been up and doing this? Shiro had been standing outside her door for around twenty minutes and hadn’t heard a peep until now. Maybe it’d had only just gotten so frenetic.

“Shiro, I checked the bed a thousand times—try somewhere else!” The Altean Princess demanded.

“Yes, ma’am.” Shiro dropped to the floor and looked in the corner behind her nightstand. Upon looking, he noticed something sticking out of a small hole. “Princess—could that be it?” He pointed.

Allura joined him on the floor, pushing her way in to see where Shiro was looking. She reached her arm into the crevice, trying to grab what the black paladin found. He heard a squeak and Allura pulled out one of the mice that lived with the princess. The smallest one. “Not but a mouse...I'll bet _you_ stole it, didn't you? You thief!”

The little blue mouse squeaked and wriggled away, running back under the bed in fear. Shiro hoped he didn't take it too hard.

Allura groaned, collapsing on the side of her bed. “Shiro, what if I never find it? They were my mother’s! How could I have disgraced her like this!?”

“You haven't disgraced her...it’ll turn up, I’m sure of it.” Shiro tried to reassure her.

The Princess tilted her head toward the black paladin, crocodile tears forming in her gem-like eyes. “Do you think so?”

“I know so.”

“Oh, thank you, Shiro.” She sniffed, brushing her long, white hair out of her face. She shook her head and something glinted in her hair. Shiro squinted. “You're such a comfort in these trying times.”

“Um…” Shiro cleared his throat, not taking his eyes off her hair. “May I?” He gestured with his finger, asking if he could touch her hair.

“What?” She asked, playing with a strand. Shiro’s hand advanced and combed it into Allura’s hair. She tensed until Shiro untangled her earring from within it, then her eyes lit up.

Her mouth broke into a huge smile, and she giggled. “Oh my...it was…” She laughed again, taking the piece of jewelry from Shiro’s hand. “Thank you...I don't know what came over me. I’m embarrassed now…”

“You shouldn't be. But you _should_ get back to bed. You’ll need your strength.” Shiro stood and offered a hand to help her up. Allura took it, smiling lazily. It seemed her loss of sleep was finally getting to her.

“Yes, I will. You should too, Shiro.”

Shiro smiled back. Maybe his bad feeling was just his dinner coming back to haunt him.

 ...

When Allura was back in bed, Shiro waved her good night and let the door slide closed behind him. He sighed with relief, thinking everything would be okay until he turned to see Coran staring at him in disbelief.

“Shiro, wha—?” The redhead Altean gestured with his hands between him and the door. “Were you just _in_ there!? I specifically told you _not_ to go near her!”

“It was fine—I helped her find her earring and she went back to bed,” Shiro explained. “She seemed relatively calm... _afterward_.”

“Oh, nooo,” Coran ran his hands through his hair, causing his usual hair-doink to pull back and spring forward. “She _trusts_ you now!”

“Isn't that…a good thing?” Shiro asked, slowly.

“No, not for either of us! If she thinks she can trust you in her state, it'll be worse when you deny her anything! As for me, you might as well have thrown me right to the Gobswabblers! She'll listen to a snark before me!”

“Am I...considered a _snark_ in this situation?”

“ _You’re_ lucky to get out of there alive, in my opinion!” Coran hissed. “Oh, I wish you hadn't done that…”

“I’m sorry, Coran—I-I just don't think it went as bad as you do.” Shiro tried for a small smile.

Coran squinted, suddenly. “Did she...did she give you...the _look_?”

“‘The look’?” Shiro repeated.

“Yes, the _look.”_ Coran’s face morphed into some sort of sparkling, lovey-dovey expression, complete with clasped hands and the flutter of his eyelids. “Like _that?_ ”

“Um...now that you mention it…”

“Oh, and you fell for it!” Coran stated, dramatically feigning a faint.

“I think you’re jumping to conclusions a bit, Coran.” The black paladin watched in concern as Coran seemed to be performing a strange alien dance.

“I must assume everything! And I _assumed_ your mental fortitude was stronger than this, but I suppose I should have trusted in the assumption that you would fall for her tricks!”

“‘Tricks’?” Shiro watched as Coran paced back and forth, ignoring the paladin.

“Maybe I should have assumed _Pidge_ would have been a better choice for this!”

“Coran!” Shiro was able to grab onto the helmsman’s wrist and catch his attention. Looking into Coran’s eyes, Shiro could see no small amount of worry swimming in his purple irises. It was obvious he had never handled a situation like this before. At least, not by himself. It was understandable for him to be becoming unglued as the circumstances gradually became more and more out of hand. He couldn’t get updates about the flower, he couldn’t reason with (typically) one of the most reasonable people on the ship, and, of course, Shiro wasn’t helping by disobeying his directive. “I’m sorry for what I did. I know this is difficult and what I did didn’t help. You know more about this than anyone on this ship and I should have listened. But I need you to keep your head. We all do.”

The redhead took a deep breath through his nose and out through his mouth. “Yes, yes, I know...it happened to my mother before I was born and to Allura’s mother before I knew her. I’ve been with the Princess’s family all her life and I knew this day would eventually come. I should have prepared for it.”

“You were a bit too _preoccupied_ to think about that before now.”

“I think you’re right…” Coran sighed once again. “Thank you, lad. I just hope everything goes alright. I can’t afford to lose another member of the family. Especially over something as _silly_ as this.”

Suddenly, a scream came from inside Allura’s room. An angry one. "Who's blabbering out there!?"

“Did you lock the door, perhaps?” Coran asked. The black paladin’s eyes widened.

“Was I supposed to?”

The door swept open.


	3. Bumps in the Road - 1

Pidge pushed another branch out of their way as Hunk continued walking carefully through the alien foliage. They had found out that the leaves have an oil in them that activates to touch and clears fog. Hunk figured out how to close the stem so it wouldn’t leak out and they could use the blade as a glowstick.

Pidge also decided that, though she wasn’t a chemist, there was some sort of corrosive element in the plant that evaporated the fog. She wasn’t positive what was _in_ the leaf nor if the fog was even made of water, but she could ask Coran about it later.

“See anything yet, Hunk?” Pidge asked, raising her leaf above her head to clear the fog.

“Nada,” Hunk responded, sweeping his stalk to the left. “I _do_ see that there are a lot less plants here to trigger, though.”

“Mm...I thought the same thing, Watson.” Pidge leaned down to look at the ground. It appeared as though plants _had_ been there, but they were amassed. “Where do you think they went?”

“I’m not positive...it sure is getting muddy around here, though. I blame the lack of plant-age.”

“Lack of plant-age _is_ blameable.” The green-paladin replied, mindlessly.

“No sign of life as far as the eye can see...which is about three feet in front of me…”

Pidge squinted as her eyes caught sight of something dark in the distance. It seemed to be moving, but more robotically.

Hunk continued rambling, “I’ve been holding this leaf...since we got here...it’s _very_ dark…”

The yellow-paladin passed by a tree and Pidge leaned forward to see around it faster. The dark figure was getting bigger. Which meant it was getting closer.

“...and _very_ desolate…”

“Hunk, stop,” Pidge whispered, ducking and lowering her leaflet.

“What, what? What is it?” Hunk immediately abandoned his glowleaf and crouched behind the thick trunk of a tree. Pidge tried to keep balance as he did this, grasping as Hunk’s head.

“Shh! Be careful!” Pidge hissed. “I don’t know—it doesn’t look very friendly…”

“Monster? How big was it?”

The green-paladin slowly inched her head to see around their hiding spot. She couldn’t see anything anymore. Maybe they scared it away. “It was hard to tell at the distance...”

“I think I can guess…” Hunk replied, with a gulp.

Pidge whirled her head only to be met with a familiar looking gun pointing at her face.

“Oh yeah…” Pidge furrowed her brow, noticing out of the corner of her eye several more figures emerging from the dark fog. “Galra…”

…

Hunk and Pidge soon found themselves cuffed and escorted in the same direction they were headed. As their journey progressed, Pidge could see the outline of a huge Galran base camp. It looked hastily built, with bits of metal sticking out the top of it like no one could be bothered to measure out the necessary sizes. Pipes jutted out the sides and chimneys puffed some form of smoke. Was it a factory? What were they producing?

The paladins were lead over a bridge that connected two sides of a huge trench. The fog had significantly lessened since they got there, and, upon a glance down, Pidge figured out why. There was a river of leaf-juice glowing far below.

“Well, that answers the question about where all the plants went.” She mumbled to Hunk.

“Yep.” He responded, clearly trying to sound calm. “How do we get out of this one?”

Pidge was pushed from behind, a gesture to keep her moving. She grunted, not in the least bit grateful for it. “Not sure. I’ll think of something.”

As they were dragged deeper into the Galra encampment, Pidge’s eyes scanned the walls. They looked weak, which was probably a symptom of quick building. Hunk could probably bust through one by knocking against it. A good option, but the first obstacle would be to get away from the soldiers. They were out-numbered, two against five and, with their hands cuffed, they definitely wouldn't have the advantage.

Should they wait, then? They’d probably be taken to a cell until the commander or whatever dealt with them.

They turned down a corridor and Pidge could see a door at the end. It didn't look like a typical Galra jail cell. Then again, this wasn't your typical Galran headquarters.

“Excuse me, kind robot man, where are we going?” Hunk asked the guard next to him. “Aren't we going to see your commander?”

The robot crackled out, “Order protocol 2107: all trespasser within the perimeter are to be taken to the chamber and terminated without question.”

“Oh, okay, I understand.” Hunk turned his face back to Pidge. His eyes were wide and watering in fear.

The green paladin started to panic. She looked behind her. No one was coming, but these guards could probably call their friends before Hunk and Pidge could finish these five. They still had their bayards secured in their thigh armor, so it wouldn't be safe to reveal it when it could easily be taken away. When they were alone, Pidge could cut them free.

That is if there wasn't instant death awaiting them beyond that door.

When they reached it, one of the guards placed a hand on the panel next to it and entered a code. The door slid open and before Pidge could have a second thought, she and Hunk were dumped into a chamber.

The door sealed shut behind them, and the small brunette struggled to her knees. It was nearly pitch black, save for the little red lights trailing upwards and the glow from their suits.

“You okay, Pidge?” Hunk’s voice echoed. Pidge groaned. She’d landed on her shoulder when they fell in and it was aching quite painfully.

“I guess so…can you see anything?” The green paladin tried to roll her shoulder, wincing at the electric pain that shocked her.

“Not really…” The yellow paladin responded. “Could you cut us free?”

“Yeah, hang on.” Pidge laid on her back and pulled her hand under her legs, ignoring her shoulder screaming. She tapped the side of her leg and, like usual, her bayard shot into her hand. “C’mere.”

She scooted closer to Hunk as he held out his hands for her. She dragged the triangular blade down the middle of Hunk’s cuffs and he pulled them apart the rest of the way. He then turned and did the same for Pidge.

When her hands were free, the small paladin reached for her right shoulder. She pressed her thumb into the gap in her armor and grunted, immediately regretting doing that.

“Pidge what's wrong? Are you hurt?” Hunk asked. Before Pidge could answer, a loud clunking sound echoed in the chamber. They both froze in fear at what that could mean. Suddenly, the sound of rushing water roared loudly in their ears. Pidge looked down to see the water was already at her ankles.

“Oh great, we’re dead!”

“Hunk, we’ve gotta get out of here! Can you break through the walls?” Pidge asked, leading the way to the nearest wall.

“I don't know!” Hunk answered. The water was up to Pidge’s knees already. The yellow paladin shuffled to the edge of the chamber and looked closer. “If we’re supposed to be drowned in here, I don't think there would be many cracks!” He shouted, hysterically.

“Look for some! There’s gotta be a weakness somewhere!” Pidge said, quickly. She climbed up onto the wall she stood before. This whole thing, like the rest of the base, was made out of scraps, pipes, and all sorts of recycled material. There had to be an Achilles heel.

Pidge used the glow from her bayard to look closer to the wall. She squinted and noticed a lot of scratch marks on a flat part of it. Guess they weren't the first ones in here.

“Hunk, up here!” Pidge called over the sound of the water. Hunk made his way to where Pidge was. Upon looking, the green paladin noticed the water was already up to Hunk’s waist. Oh, quiznak.

“Pidge, I can't reach up there!” Hunk pointed out. “Get on my shoulders and you get it!”

“I can't! I hit my shoulder when we got thrown in here!” Pidge yelled.

“Um, um, um, okay! Use your bayard to weaken it! When the water gets high enough, I’ll—”

Another clank sounded and another pipe opened just above them, gushing with water.

Hunk covered himself with his arm, pushing against the wall to keep out of the heavy flow. Pidge heard him say something but she couldn't make out what it was.

“What!?” She shouted.

The yellow paladin gestured for Pidge to get on his shoulders. Pidge did so, one foot at a time. Hunk held onto her ankles to secure her. Once she was balanced, Pidge turned her attention back to the scrapes in the wall. She summoned her bayard again and swapped it to her left hand. She began slashing at the wall repeatedly, desperately trying to make a dent in it.

“Hey, Pidge!? Any progress!?” Hunk called, his voice breaking a bit. Pidge looked down to see the water had made its way to her feet, past Hunk’s shoulders.

“Do you really wanna know!?” Pidge bashed at the wall ferociously, barely making a dent. This might be easier if she could use her dominant arm. The one she beat Lance at arm-wrestling with once.

“This _might_ be a bad time to tell you, but my helmet’s _maybe_ , just _might_ be a _little, teensy_ bit cracked!” Hunk admitted. Pidge’s heart dropped to her stomach. If that were true, then Hunk...

”Hunk, let me down and start swimming!” Pidge jumped down into the water, resurfacing quickly.

They were now both head level with the scratches in the wall. “Should I use _my_ bayard!?”

“The blast might ricochet and hit us!” Pidge sputtered as the water reached her chin. She closed her helmet. “Just hit it! I'll see if I can find another exit.”

Hunk transformed his bayard and used one end to smash the damaged wall as the green paladin dove underwater. She turned on the flashlight on her arm and boosted herself to the other side of the death chamber.

She searched the edges, scanning for any kind of hole or a weak screw— _something_.

Pidge finally noticed a piece of metal protruding out on the bottom of the container. It was pointed and flat almost like a weird screwdriver. “Hunk, I think I found something we can use.”

“Hurry and bring it up!”

The small brunette sliced through the base of the metal strip with her bayard then boosted herself back to the surface to give it to Hunk. The water was almost covering the weakened spot.

“Here, jam this into it and hit it as hard as you can.” Pidge handed the plank to the yellow paladin who swiftly did as he was told. It jammed into the crevices in the wall rather nicely; all it would take was a few solid hits. But it's definitely hard to get a single ‘solid hit’ in water.

Hunk wailed on it, bashing the butt of his gun desperately into the metal. It was at this point, Hunk was making up a song about not dying. “I don't wanna die, so please work, please!”

“Good lyrics—maybe use ‘please’ slightly less!” Pidge offered. Her paladin suit was getting sticky from all the sweat she was secreting.

“I don't wanna die, so _pretty please work!_ ” Hunk cried, hopelessly. His head was nearly underwater as he tried and tried again to bust through the wall. He took a deep breath, then sunk under to keep working the wedge into the wall.

“You’ve almost got it, Hunk! Just a little more!” The green paladin urged. She started trying to help by using her bayard, but she wasn't sure what good it was doing. She was about as useful in the strength field as a surgical knife was to a plumber. Except she was underwater—so a scuba diver?

Hunk put away his bayard and resorted to kicking the wedge with his foot instead. He grunted, putting as much strength as he could into each hit and, on around the third, the metal went through. Pidge nearly screamed out of relief. “Hunk, it’s through! Pull it out!”

Hunk did so, and water started rushing out. The pressure must've been tremendous seeing as the suction cause the hole to widen exponentially and suddenly drag both of them out of the chamber.

Pidge yelped when she hit solid ground. Water washed over her and all over the hallway she was now lying in. She heard a sputtering grunt and looked over to see Hunk popping off his helmet. The water streamed out of it as he choked in air, coughing wetly.

“Hunk! Are you okay?” Pidge asked, standing quickly to run to the paladin’s side. Hunk held up a finger as he turned his head to hack out any remaining liquid from his lungs.

He cleared his throat, “I have two things—” He coughed, “—to say. One; I _hated_ that. Two; I feel like I'm gonna throw up.”

Pidge laughed, lightly. “Glad you made it through.” Although, she was a little more than just ‘glad’ now was not the time. She could collapse out of relief later when they got out of there.

“Okay, what's the escape plan now?” The yellow paladin brought himself to his feet, holding his stomach.

“We should probably find our pack, first.” Pidge mindlessly put a hand to her hurt shoulder. The adrenaline of Hunk nearly dying was probably lessening the pain.

“Awh! I was hoping you forgot about that and we could just go back to our lions…”

“Hunk!”

“I'm sorry, you're right. I should think of the princess.” He held up his hands, defeatedly.

“And, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like to blow this place up.” Pidge sloshed through the remaining water and peeked around a fork in the hallway.

“Blow it up!?” Hunk spat, “Have we done that before!? Are we allowed to?”

“You're thinking ‘obliterate’ blow-up. I'm thinking just ‘take down the structure’ blow-up…” Pidge explained, nonchalantly.

“And _how_ do we do that?”

“I think there might be a way to cause an earthquake. You saw the outside of this thing—not only is it made of scraps, it's also tilting sideways like a rug got pulled out from underneath it.” Pidge gestured Hunk forward and they both tiptoed to the next dimly-lit hallway.

“Well, sure I noticed,” Hunk said. “But you'd need long-wavelength, high-intensity vibrations to mimic seismic waves. I don't see how we can—oh, wait that's...that's what the explosion’s for. I-I see. Got it.”

“Precisely. We’re just gonna encourage what's already happening.” Pidge grinned, rubbing her hands together. “I can't wait to sink this place into the ground. I've always wanted to try my hand at tectonic forces.”

“Y’know, you sound kinda scary when you say it like that.” Hunk commented as they rounded another corner.

“Cool, cause that's what I was going for,” Pidge replied.


	4. Hips Don't Lie - 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And Klance!
> 
> Next chapter coming soon!

So it turns out, the leaf lost juice in about ten minutes. And by juice, Lance meant glowstick-like liquid that leaked all over his paladin suit. It was greasy, and it made him feel like one of those glow-in-the-dark skeletons you get around Halloween.

Also, it’s glow ran out so they had to cut a new one, which Lance was not happy about. Another leaf meant more leaf grease all over him. Keith, on the other hand, was happy to let him carry the light to lead the way. He was having a wonderful time getting his way today, wasn’t he? First the pack, and now the leaking leaves. What next?

“Keith, I don’t know how much of this I can take,” Lance said, flicking some glowing grease off his hand. He had been walking in front of Keith, waving this gross plant around to clear the fog and find a path with the least trippable plants. Like Keith had said, if they activate the light in too many, they’d be flipping on the switch to a neon sign saying ‘For a tasty snack, follow this path!’; which was not something they needed.

And as much as Lance liked holding this greasing glowstick, he liked living more. “Have you seen any sign of _anything_? A trap? A flower?”

“Nope, nothing.”

“Are you even looking!?”

“Of course I'm looking! I can only see so far, you know?” Keith replied, defensively.

“Maybe if you’d get your own glow-leaf, we’d have more luck.” Lance snapped. Keith scoffed.

“Like that would ever happen.”

Lance was about to retort back, but he was interrupted by a crackling and rustling noise from the branches above them. The blue paladin’s eyes shot up, immediately searching for what made it. Was it those weird water gremlins? He hoped not. But if it was something worse, he wouldn't want that either. Lance had no preference when it came to immediate danger. Just not dying.

Keith ducked low, producing his bayard. “Get down!” He hissed, pulling Lance down under the brush. Lance tried not to touch the leaves. It probably wasn't the best idea to hide in bushes that would point out exactly where they were.

“Keith...we don't have anywhere safe to hide...let's just move along; try to find a clearing,” Lance whispered, scanning the trees for any sign of movement. It was quiet now. “C’mon, I think it's gone.”

The blue paladin stood slowing, waving his leaf in the fog to clear it. He couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

Keith stood warily next to him, his sword at the ready. This guy was seriously on edge, but Lance didn't mind. At least he had a little protection.

“You really think it's gone?” The red paladin asked, eyeing their surroundings.

“I don't see anything. Do _you_?” Lance said back, snarkily. He may have spoken too soon, since, in a flash, he saw a creature jump out at Keith from his right. “Keith, look out!”

Keith was quick to react but not quick enough. The alien dug his claws under his helmet and threw it off. It then grabbed at Keith’s head and succeeded in gripping a fistful of his hair. The red paladin wrapped his hands around the gremlin thing and pulled it off, hoisting it back into the bushes. He winced as the creature yanked out a clump of his hair before it went sailing away.

“Keith, are you okay!?” The blue paladin stepped toward his companion before he felt something grab his ankle. Lance screamed, jumping and kicking his leg, thinking it was another Cizer. He gasped as a sensation suddenly filled his stomach, electrifying his whole body. A feathery sensation, like he was falling. It took him a moment to realize why.

He had tripped off the side of a sloping cliff, with his last sight being Keith reaching out a hand for him and calling his name


	5. More than a Malady - 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pidge and Hunk chapter coming soon!

“Shiro-- _what_ are you doing speaking with _Coran_?” Allura spoke like a clock, winding down slowly. Coran yelped and ducked behind the black paladin.

“Um...am I not allowed to..?” Shiro responded, slowly.

“No!” She stepped closer to Shiro and he leaned away. “You’re only allowed to talk to me! How am I supposed to know whether or not you're plotting against me? Coran used to speak to my father like this and by the time my birthday came around, there were no _spacklegrams_ on my _grage_!”

Shiro was not sure how to respond to this. “I'm sorry, Princess...I didn't know it was that big of a deal..?”

“You earthlings never care, do you? You only care about yourself!” Allura’s ears were getting redder by the second. And, if possible, so was the pressure the princess was putting on the paladin.

Shiro held up his hand to hopefully keep the princess at a comfortable distance. “We weren't talking about anything _against_ you…”

Allura sat back on her heels. “Not only are you earthlings selfish, you're also liars.”

“What do you mean?”

“If you _weren't_ plotting against me, why is Coran _running_!?”

Shiro’s eyes widened and he whipped his head around to find the helmsman was no longer cowering behind him. He looked to his left and saw Coran rounding a corner. Great teamwork, Coran the Man…

“U-um…” Shiro’s voice shook as he looked back into the angry Altean’s eyes. He could barely meet them since it felt like he was staring into the threshold of Hell. Or whatever Hell was in Altean. “...I don't know, why don't I go ask him..?”

Shiro took off in a sprint after the redhead, regrets washing over him like an ocean wave on the shore. “Run all you will, Shiro! No matter what, I'll teach you for betraying my trust!”

The black paladin didn't want to know what that meant.

…

Shiro had lost track of the helmsman by the time he swooped down the next hallway. Where had he run to? And _why_ the _quiznak_ would he leave Shiro with Allura the way she was acting?

“Coran!” Shiro hissed, hoping the princess wasn't tailing him. “Coran, where--”

He was suddenly yanked sideways into a dimly lit room. It appeared to be a broom closet. “Wha--?”

“Shh!” Coran warned. “She’ll hear you...did I mention her senses are heightened in her state? She can practically _taste_ where we are!”

“What do we do?” The paladin whispered.

“I have a plan. If we can lure her to the arena, we’ll be able to capture her in the maze.” The redhead explained. He reached down and grabbed what looked like a broom off the floor. “Shiro, you'll need to be the bait.”

“I’ll _what!?_ ” Shiro raised his voice slightly and Coran immediately put a hand over his mouth. He paused for a moment like he was waiting for something to happen then removed his hand and grabbed a roll of (extremely sticky) Altean tape. Shiro continued in a lower voice, “You want _me_ to lure the princess into the arena?”

“Yes! What, do you expect _me_ to do it? I barely got away with my life last time I encountered her!” Coran snapped the handle of the broom over his knee.

“That's cause you _ran_ without saying anything,” Shiro commented.

“Exactly! She had murder in her eyes and you were the only one who _might_ have been capable of appeasing her if _you_ hadn't run too! Now we're on our last hopes.”

“Great…” Shiro sighed, leaning his head against the wall. Coran started taping another item to one end of the broom then began rewiring it. “What are you doing, Coran?”

“It's for defense. My martial arts may be good, but they have no effect on the princess.” Coran secured the wiring with more tape. “She's been better than me since she was 40. Ah, she was so sweet. Just a little tike and she threw me over her shoulder like I was a sack of _huit_ …” Coran chuckled.

There was another thing to worry about. If her senses were heightened, was her strength as well? She was already stronger than Shiro, that was for sure. Now he wouldn't even stand a chance.

“What does your weapon do?”

“Well, this thing I taped to the end is actually used for infestations. Those nasty little space beetles need to be stunned, so…” Coran demonstrated by pressing the button. The end shot with an electrical pulse that ended up leaving a huge burnt spot on the wall. It was so loud, both of them held their breath to make certain they weren't found out.

When nothing happened, Shiro said, “You're going to stun the princess? Why don't we just use that and, I don't know, _bring_ her to the arena?”

“Oh, this won't stop her. This only has enough power to make her pause. No doubt it will make her angrier if I use it.” The helmsman shrugged. The black paladin put a hand to his forehead.

“Then why make it at all?”

“Because! Your actions have leveled us. I'm having to resort to plan G since plans, A, B, C, D, E, _and_ F would all get us killed at this point.” Coran turned to look out the door. “She's progressing rather quickly. I predict she'll reach stage three in maybe a varga. Possibly less.”

“That only gives us an hour…” Shiro translated.

“And we’d better get star--”

The sudden dropping sound of the power going out stopped Coran mid-sentence. The only light left was the little reserve lights that lined the walls, which was barely enough to cast solemn shadows on Coran’s face.

“Why did the power go out? Coran, what's happening? Is this part of the plan?” Shiro questioned in a sort of panic.

“I hope the other paladins find the Citzeret flower and come back soon…” Coran’s voice was low like he was hiding from a predator in the grass. “It seems the princess has shut down the power…”

“What do we do _now_?”

Coran took a slow breath in, “Stick to the plan...I have a feeling one of us might not make it out of this. If that happens, I want you to know it was all my fault. I should have read the signs.”

Shiro grabbed Coran’s hand and held it up like comrades in a war. “We’ll make it. Don't worry.”

Coran gave an uncertain smile. “I knew you were a good choice, Shiro.” The helmsman nodded to him. “Right, let's get to it then. If the power’s out, that means Princess Allura is near the engine room. That's only three turns away from the arena. You'll need to either convince her to come with you or run like a gazelle would from a lion. Either way, you _have_ to get her to the maze.”

“Understood.”

“Right then. Best of luck,” Coran saluted him. “You were a great paladin.”

He really made it sound like a 'last mission'. Shiro very much hoped that wasn't actually the case.


	6. Bumps in the Road - 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taken forever to update this--I've been at a loss as far as writing goes and I've been wanting to finish this, so new chapters are coming soon!!
> 
> Short, short chapter, but I'll get more out soon!

Hunk and Pidge wandered through the fort for awhile until they reached what appeared to be where the Galra kept most of their supplies and information. On the journey, Pidge and Hunk had both remarked at how little guards there were as they made their way around, only running into one or two, which they avoided completely. This place wasn't well guarded, so what was it used for? Were they stealing the planets quintessence? Or just ‘covering bases’? Who knew.

But that's not what they were there for. The mission was to find a flower and get it to the princess. And if taking out a Galra base was a bump in the road, they just needed to get over it.  
  
“So, how are we planning on taking this place down?” Hunk asked, his eyes circling around the room to check if the coast was clear.  
  
“I was just planning on looking around until I got an idea. There’s gotta be something we can use in all this stuff.” Pidge marveled, approaching the nearest crate.  
  
“Hmm...maybe we could re-route the wiring on a couple of their laser guns to overheat them.” The yellow paladin offered.  
  
Pidge hummed in thought, “That might work, but how could we set them off all at once?”  
  
“Oh, good point…” Hunk picked up what looked like a crowbar and started jamming the crates open.  
  
Pidge climbed on top of one the yellow paladin opened to check the contents. She picked out a strange looking jar and popped the lid off of it. She peered inside and saw what looked like construction putty.  
  
“Hey, Hunk, give me your helmet for a sec.” Pidge held out her hand. Hunk pulled off his helmet and gave it to her. She smothered some of the goop on the cracked surface and scraped off the excess. “There. That should do until we get back.”  
“Thanks. Now I won’t have to inhale toxic air.” Hunk replaced his headgear and continued opening crates. He blinked in surprise at the contents of one he just cracked opened. “Hey, Pidge. Could we use these?”  
  
The green paladin jogged to where Hunk was, climbing up on top of another box to see inside the one Hunk was talking about. What she saw certainly put a smile on her face. They were Galra detonators--several tiny mines that were probably used for busting small things like locked doors and the like.    
   
She giggled, mischievously, “Yes, this is perfect.”  
  
“Please don’t do that…” Hunk bemoaned as Pidge rubbed her hands together like a mad scientist.  
  
“Hey, the least we can do is have a little fun.” The green paladin defended. “It’s not like we’re here by choice.”  
  
“I guess…” Her companion shrugged, “I just don’t think any of this can be classed as ‘fun’. On a beach grilling corn and pineapples and playing beach volleyball—now that sounds fun.” Hunk hummed happily, fantasizing about his beach trip.  
  
Pidge ignored him and gathered as many explosives as her good arm could carry. “Hunk, grab a ton of these. I know exactly where we need to put them.”  
  
Pidge headed over to one of the computers and connected. She began hacking into the system to see if she could dig up a map of the place.  
  
Suddenly, the base burst into a madhouse of blaring noises and flashing lights—the place was on alert. They must have finally found out that Pidge and Hunk had escaped from the death chamber.  
  
“Um, I think we need to start hurrying now!” Hunk panicked.  
  
“Hold on, here it is!” Pidge started downloading the layout of the camp to her wrist computer. As soon as it finished, she found the fastest route to the power chamber.  
  
“C’mon, we gotta hurry before they find us. Go back out the way we came.” Hunk shrieked and started booking in out of the room. Pidge froze, reaching into the crate for a detonation button.

“Can't forget that.” She said to herself, then ran after Hunk.


	7. Hips Don't Lie - 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHH OKAY ANOTHER ONE ADVKJABDKJVB
> 
> I've basically finished the Klance & Shallura parts of this fic so like the Pidge & Hunk part is MY bump in the road (ba dum tsssss)
> 
> ANYWAY ENJOY SJVBKAJBA

Keith called down the cliff, “Lance! Lance, answer me!”  
  
No answer came. He called again. Nothing. Where was he? Did he hit his head? “Lance!”  
  
“I’m okay, Keith! I’m fine!” The red paladin sighed in relief at finally hearing his voice.  
  
“What took you so long to answer?” Keith shouted. Lance emerged from the fog, struggling up the steep hill. Keith held out a hand and Lance took it, helping him up the rest of the way. He looked a little battered, but not hurt.  
  
“I was getting my pack. I lost it when I fell.” Lance explained. “I was worried one of those thing-y’s might take it.”  
  
“Why would they want that?” Keith asked, rhetorically. Lance brushed himself free of a few bits of dirt and twigs and, as he did, Keith noticed something.  
  
“Lance...what happened to all the leaf-juice?” The red paladin pointed a questioning finger.  
  
“‘Leaf-juice’?” Lance looked down at himself, confused. “What leaf-juice?”  
  
“You were carrying a leaf around for an hour and got covered in it…?” Keith remarked, slowly. “Did you hit your head?”  
  
“Maybe. I don't know.” The blue paladin knocked on his helmet. “I must’ve just forgot. Or maybe _you_ hit _your_ head.” Lance laughed.  
  
Keith scoffed, “Whatever. Let's get going, then. I was thinking we should follow the Cizer that attacked me. It might lead us to a flower.”  
  
“Sure,” Lance replied, easily. The black-haired raised an eyebrow, looking over his shoulder at his companion.  
  
“You’re not gonna argue? Tell me it's a terrible idea?”  
  
“Why would I? I trust you.”  
  
Keith almost fell over.  
  
“You _what?_ ”  
  
“Uh, _trust_ you?” Lance let out a short laugh. “What? You didn't know?”  
  
“No…”  
  
“Well, now you do. Let's go.”  
  
Now, it may have been what Coran said about the Cizer’s transformative ability, or Keith’s inability to trust anyone or anything or both, but Keith had the sneaking suspicion that he was not actually talking to the real Lance. The way he was acting--Lance would rather swallow hot coal than remotely suggest he trusts Keith, his ‘ultimate rival’. The real Lance would argue their plan and probably come up with a better option than Keith had, as much as Keith hated to admit it.  
  
In other words, Lance was smarter than to trust Keith’s uncontrollable instincts without question. He used his brain to consider every choice before deciding something as quickly as Keith would. He was a sapling leader, not a follower. Not that Keith wasn't good at coming up with plans, he just usually didn't think them through and relied on chances more than anything.  
  
The red paladin mindlessly placed a hand on his bayard, his body telling him to draw his sword. Draw it, and drive it through this ‘Lance’s’ abdomen.  
  
But there was no way Keith would risk accidentally hurting his teammate. At least, not until he was certain.  
  
“Alright, then.” Keith started forward with a shrug. He let his body language relax, but he didn't move his hand from the bayard on his hip.

* * *

 “So the little freak totally tripped me and I fell back into what I thought would be my demise, but there was actually a lot of soft moss down the hill so it saved my butt,” Lance explained as they made their way through the foggy forest once more. They were following the light-path of plants the Cizer set off. It cleared the fog enough to see the floor, so Keith lead the way this time.  
  
“I know,” Keith retorted, “I was there when it happened.”  
  
The blue paladin went quiet for a moment before saying, “I bet I could tell you a bunch of stuff you didn't know, wise-guy.”  
  
“Oh really? Like what?” The red paladin responded, brushing past a rather large leaf. He let it fly back to hit Lance, and it burst into light. His companion grunted, sputtering as he pushed the plant from his face.  
  
“Well, for one thing--you’re pretty cute when you smile.” Keith jerked to a stop. “At least, to me.”  
  
“What…?” Keith turned around to gape at Lance. He was smiling quite smugly.  
  
“See, you didn’t know.”  
  
“Of course I didn’t! You--!” Keith stopped himself. He felt his face heating up, so he turned his back to Lance hoping to hide it.  
  
Why would he say that? Why, of all times, now? Cause they were alone? Because their lives were just in danger? That couldn’t be it--they’d been in danger before. There was nothing Keith could think of that could make sense of what just happened other than the fact that this Lance was an imposter. He had to be. Maybe the Cizer hacked into their victim’s thoughts and memories and used them against their comrades. If this was really Lance, there was no other way Keith could deal with it.  
  
Oh no...what if it was the real Lance? If so, was he just teasing him? Trying to get a rise out of him? Should Keith respond in case those really are Lance’s feelings? He didn’t want to hurt him. And this would give Keith a good opportunity to convey his... _why now, why now, why now..._  
  
“Keith…?” Lance’s voice came from behind him. “You okay, buddy…?”  
  
In a flash, Keith had Lance pinned against a tree with his bayard drawn. He pressed the blade to the blue paladin’s throat, taking in heavy breaths.  
  
Keith had finally come to a decision. He was going to interrogate this Lance so his mind would stop screaming at him to run away.  
  
“I don’t know if you’re the real Lance or not...” Keith started, threateningly, “But I don’t like being played with. So you’re going to tell me something...”  
  
“Keith, wha--?”  
  
“Do you like me?” Keith’s gaze pierced into blue eyes and there was something in them he didn’t recognize. A blankness replaced the usual light in them. In other words, they were as emotionless as a sea with no waves.  
  
“Of-of course I do!” Lance stuttered. “Didn’t you hear what I said?”  
  
“Sure, I did,” Keith smirked. That was the last thing he needed to know before removing his weapon from Lance’s throat and running it through his abdomen. He heard the fake Lance grunt in surprise. “But the real Lance would never admit to it. Nice try.”  
  
Fake-Lance collapsed against the tree, clutching his wound as purple blood oozed out of it. He grunted out, “But I-I thought you...you...were in love with each other…”  
  
Keith crouched next to him, laying his sword on the ground. He wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he didn’t. Instead, he asked, “Where’s Lance?”  
  
To the red paladin’s horror, the shape-shifter started laughing. “No doubt on his way to his demise, by now…how foolish of you to waste your time searching when my brethren escaped long ago.”  
  
“Hey, you actually sound like Lance, now,” Keith remarked. He collected the pack for the flower, and ran back to where Lance had fallen, hoping the Cizer wasn’t right.


	8. More than a Malady - 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LAST SHALLURA CHAPTER !!
> 
> Okay, one more chapter for the other two and then, one more to finish up and I'll be done!
> 
> Hunk and Pidge up next! Hope you're excited!

Shiro and Coran had gone their separate ways; the engineer armed with a stunner, and Shiro armed with, well, his _arm_ . Though he didn't want to use it. When he first met Allura, he never in _million_ years would have guessed he would be hunted by her because of some Altean illness. There was no way he could have. Shiro only knew Princess Allura by her wit, stunning beauty, and incredible leadership skills. Now, he was being told to forget everything he previously knew about her because, otherwise, he'd get torn apart. Literally.  


It wasn't as easy as it seemed.  


“Princess…?” Shiro called as he drew nearer to the engine room. “Princess, are you here? I need to talk to you.”  


‘Talking’ was not what Coran had suggested but, honestly? Even if Shiro _did_ die there was no _way_ he was raising arms against the princess. If he could convince her to trust him, get her to the arena, and trap her there until the team got back, there would be no reason to. He'd prefer that, but when push came to shove...he wasn't sure if he was gonna fight or fall.  


“Allura…?”  


“Shiro, is that you?” Shiro’s heart nearly jumped out of his ribcage. He turned to see the princess tiredly coming around a corner, looking as innocent and unthreatening as a mouse.  


“Yes, i-it’s me…” The paladin responded.  


“Why is it so dark? And why am I down here?” Was she snapping out of it?  


“Um...Coran accidentally shot the system trying to work on some repairs...he needs your help in the arena…” Shiro lied. Allura drew nearer to him, the soft glow of the hall lights adding a slight luminescence to the Altean Princess’s hair Shiro couldn't quite look away from. She had a very different air about her from the last time he saw her, though he couldn't figure out what it was. She was definitely calmer and quieter. What was going on?

“I, uh, came to get you, so…” Shiro gestured for her to follow him. Though he was gonna let her walk in front just in case this was another trick or something.  


“Right, right, yes. Coran needs our help.” Allura giggled, unexpectedly. She paused. “With what again?”  


“The...power's out…” Shiro repeated, slowly.  


“Oh! It is, isn't it?” Allura swayed like she was dizzy as another adorable laugh bubbled from her. She whirled around suddenly. “Well, since we’re down here, why don't we just go to the engine room? We can reboot it there…”  


“Uh, okay…” The paladin was in no position to argue; doing so might result in ruining Allura’s mood.  


“Good, good. Come along, _Shiro_ …” She pronounced his name almost teasingly and hummed as she walked back the way she came.  


“If I may,” Shiro cleared his throat, “what's got you in such a good mood, princess?”  


“Oh, nothing, nothing…” Allura leaned back and forth with her hands clasped behind her back. “You know, simply...hanging out with Shiro puts me in a good mood.”  


Shiro was a bit taken aback by this. “Uh…”  


“A-all the paladins put me in a good mood in quite the same way!” Allura added quickly when they reached the door of the engine room. She looked surprised by her own words. “Okay, that—that was a bit of a fib…”  


“‘A fib’?”  


They entered the room and Allura approached the control panel. She pressed it awake then tapped at it for a moment. Then, with a loud whirring noise, the power came back online.  


“Yes, a fib.” Allura continued. She stepped closer to the black paladin again, brushing her hair behind her pointy ear. Shiro noticed, in the dim light, the pink marks on Allura’s cheekbones were glowing faintly. “To tell you the truth, Shiro, I've always thought you were...well, a little enticing.”  


“Y-you _did_ ? Er, you _do_ ?” Shiro raised an inquisitive eyebrow, the skin around his collar growing slightly, but noticeably, warmer.  


“Yes,” Allura’s cheek marks grew brighter. “Goodness, I'm a bit embarrassed…”  


“No, no, um, don't be!” Shiro replied, throwing a hand behind his neck bashfully. He didn't want to upset her, so he said, “I, uh...I feel the same way…” though that wasn’t the only reason he said it...  


“Hm, I had a feeling you might say that. I'm glad. Thank you, Shiro.” Allura smiled graciously, walking past the paladin. “Let’s go see Coran then. I imagine he's wondering about us.”  


“Uh, yeah.” Shiro jogged to catch up to the princess.  


What was he thinking as he followed in the princess’s confident stride to the arena? He tried not to think too much, really. He didn't want to read into what just happened too deeply, just in case. Caelestis malady was something he quickly learned not to have any expectations of. Especially since it could change at any given moment.  


“You know, Shiro. I could use a suitor. Someone to be by my side in this dark era.” Allura said, suddenly. Shiro felt the jolt of a giant hand slapping across his entire body. Yep; it was definitely the malady.  


The paladin tugged at the hem of his shirt collar, “R-really?”  


“Someone who is a strong leader—someone who is kind and understands me. And someone with _reserves_ of battle experience.” The princess went on. They were getting closer to the arena and Shiro was almost _dying_ of discomposure. If his face got any hotter, it might burst into flames. “That would be more than ideal. And...I have someone in mind who suits the position.”  


“So do I…” It was like holding the nib of a balloon about to pop.  


Allura giggled, “Are you thinking of who I'm thinking of?” She sang as the door to the arena slid open.  


“Maybe…!” Shiro sang back, with a nervous chuckle. Allura laughed as she skipped into the room.  


“Shiro, you're redder than a quinbee!” She teased, pointing directly at the paladin before dragging her point toward the control panel where Coran stood, looking confused. “Coran! We fixed the power!”  


Only after Shiro met Coran’s flabbergasted gaze in the booth and shrugged, more than mortified, did the engineer answer the princess, “Ehh, yes, wonderful! I had an idea, princess. While you’re here, why don't we test the rings maze, hmm? To-to keep your mind sharp?”  


“Only if _Shiro_ does it with me!” The princess chirped, spinning in circles and laughing.  


Coran’s eyes appeared as though they were gonna fall out of their sockets any second. “Right-o, p-princess…”  


“C’mon, c’mon, Shiro!” Allura coaxed, grabbing his arm and pulling on it aggressively. The paladin had no choice but to follow her to the center of the arena. Shiro could barely keep his head on straight—he was still caught on the whole ‘suitor’ ordeal, so his thoughts were completely muddled.  


“Alright, starting...now.”  


The holographic image of the maze phased before them, rising high above Shiro’s spinning head. The walls were semi-transparent, distorting the objects outside of them to make them appear more like a mirage. A way that only served to make Shiro’s light head lighter.  


“Okay, Shiro, now’s the time for us to split up two ways, and find each other outside,” Allura said next to him. “You go that way, I'll go this way.”  


“Right…” Shiro replied and managed a nod.  


Allura bubbled with a laugh again, then reached a hand to brush the underside of Shiro’s chin, “See you there, then, paladin…”  


Shiro felt like he was desperately trying to hold on to something that was melting in his hands. His knees were weak and he could barely grasp the idea that this was genuinely happening. Allura was _flirting_ with him. Like actually flirting in a cute, unfitting way that forced Shiro to actively keep repeating in his head, _She’s ill, it's the disease, it's not real, she doesn't really feel that way,_ etc. and, surprisingly, it stung a lot more than the black paladin had ever expected it to.  


This was definitely the hardest mission Shiro had been assigned since he joined Team Voltron.  


“Go, Shiro, go!” Allura pushed him, then ran the other way. Shiro blinked back to reality, recognizing, as though for the second time, what was going on. He started jogging forward to figure out the maze. He wandered mindlessly with nothing, in particular, occupying his airy head until he heard a scream. A scream in agony.  


“Princess! What's wrong!?” Coran asked over the speakers. Shiro had almost forgotten he was there.  


The paladin spun on his toes and ran back the other direction in an attempt to find the princess, only to come to a dead end. “Coran! Shut down the maze!”  


Coran did so and, when it disappeared, Shiro could clearly see Princess Allura lying, curled in on herself, twitching in pain. “Allura!” Shiro sprinted towards her, sliding across the floor on his knees to reach her side. He rolled her over but instantly regretted that decision as the Altean princess screamed again.  


“Don't t-touch me! It hurts!”  


Coran suddenly joined them on the floor. He had a bag Shiro recognized as the emergency medical supplies bag. If only they had a Cizeret flower in there. Then this could all be over and they could have the real princess back. “Princess, tell me what it feels like.”  


Allura tried, but all the came out was a few meek grunts as though she couldn't speak.  


“Is it your throat? Your stomach?” Coran tried. His voice was uneasy, but steady like he was trying to stay calm.  


“M-my skin! It's burning!” Allura finally spat out.  


“Alright, gotcha!” Coran rummaged through the bag. “A case if the fire bumps, is it? I've got just the thing.”  


“Fire bumps?” Shiro looked at Allura again saw that, indeed, bumps were swelling all over her arms and face. Her fingers were curling and her eyes streamed with tears. Shiro couldn't fathom what was happening and how it happened so quickly. “Coran, what can I do!?”  


“Calm her—I need to prep a dose of kaffoluna.” He explained, pulling out a needle. “It will cool her, but only if her heart’s at a steady rate.”  


“Shouldn't she just be put in a healing pod!?”  


“We can't move her! It hurts her too much. Talk to her, bring her back down so this works faster.” Coran started searching through the bag for kaffoluna as Shiro did what he was told.  


The black paladin took a deep breath and laid down next to the princess. He tried for a calm voice as he said, “It’s alright, princess. Coran’s going to stop the pain, but it will only work if you can calm your heart rate.”

Allura panted, her eyelids fluttering. Sweat trickled from her forehead as she tried to bring herself to look Shiro in the face. “I...can't...it’s too much…”  


“You can. You're the only person who I _know_ is capable of anything they set their mind to.” Shiro relayed. He placed a tentative hand on the top of her head, hoping it didn’t hurt her. “Just think of the most serene place you know. Your bedroom, maybe.”  


Allura didn't respond for a bit. She grit her teeth a struggled to keep a grip on reality. “A-a field—of f-flowers…”  


“Yes, that's good. What else?” He urged.  


“M-my father’s there...holding me…” She paused, taking a long breath in. “He says...he says everything's alright.”  


Shiro gently pets Allura’s head to encourage the vision of her father. “He's telling the truth. You're fine…you’re in good hands.”  


Allura reached a hand up towards Shiro, and Shiro offered his in return. She laid her palm into the paladins and took a deep breath. She squeezed his hand and turned her head as though she was going to sleep.

The black paladin glanced up to see Coran tapping the air out of the needle he prepared. The length of that needle made him incredibly nervous, bringing back bad memories he shook away. Not important. Focus on the princess...  


He looked down to see the princess’s breathing had slowed as if she were gradually drifting to sleep. “Coran, I think she’s calm now.”  


Coran looked over her and brushed a bit of hair out of her sweaty face. In a split second, he grinned, “Look, look! It’s reducing!” He whispered, and Shiro almost couldn’t believe his ears. His eyes, however, did not deceive him, for he saw that the fire bumps were deflating and disappearing. He was speechless.  


“It appears as though she’s calmed so much, the bumps were vanquished,” Coran explained, leaning in for a closer look.

“C-can that _happen_?”

“Well, fire bumps occur when an Altean is under a great deal of stress…” The helmsman emptied and put the needle he had readied back into the medical bag before zipping it shut once more. “They tend to happen more in young adults than anything, so this isn’t unheard of in a youth such as the princess, but it’s practically impossible to calm someone so much that the bumps recede...what did you say to her?”  


Shiro turned his attention back to Allura’s hand in his, an idea tugging at his mind that he wasn’t quite ready to admit to yet. He smiled in spite of himself, hoping Coran didn’t notice. “I...I’m not quite sure…”  


Coran didn’t look convinced. Not a lot could slip by him when it came to the princess. And his accusatory squint was enough to make Shiro avert his eyes. “Whatever you say, lad. Just be honest when you figure it out, alright?”  


“Yeah…”  


“Now, let’s get her back to bed.” The engineer stood, cracking his back. “Looks like the fatigue got to her, so we might as well lock her back in her room.”  


“Right.” The black paladin lifted the princess from the floor, regrettably releasing her hand.

 

* * *

 

When they returned her to her chambers, Shiro made sure to place her earrings on her bedside table so she wouldn't wake up in hysterics again. She nestled right into her pillow and looked more peaceful than any other time Shiro had seen her. He wanted to stay by the princess’s side until the other paladins got back from their mission. Until she was cured. But he knew he couldn't do that.  


“Come along, Shiro. Best to let her sleep.” Coran gestured for him from the doorway.  


“I just hope the team gets back soon.” The leader sighed, exiting the room so Coran could lock the door.  


“Yes, I expect they'll be here in a tick.” The helmsman turned around to face the black paladin with his hands behind his back. Shiro rubbed his arm, suddenly feeling seriously drained. “You should rest, young paladin.”  


“No, no, I want to stay here just in case.” Shiro rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand, a sigh escaping his mouth.  


“Hmm…” Coran hummed, twisting the ends of his mustache. “Alright, then, suit yourself. Just don't go getting any _funny_ ideas.”  


“Huh?” Shiro’s eyes widened.  


“I see _right_ through you, my boy,” Coran pointed at him, “You've got your eyes on the _princess,_ so I've got my eyes on _you_ .”  


“But—”  


“No ‘but’s!” Coran waggled his finger furiously, shaking his hips with it. “Just watch yourself until everything is over. The princess already has enough on her shoulders as it is.”  


Shiro paused to think before he said anything. “Y-you’re right. I'm sorry.”  


Coran took in a long breath then let it out quickly. “Look, Shiro, I did not mean that as a _permanent_ thing. I just want you to wait for her. Let her open up on her own. Don't tell her first. Whenever she feels like she's ready, then…”  


The paladin listened in anticipation for Coran to finish his sentence.  


“...I've seen the way you look at each other sometimes. I also saw the way she was acting with you in the arena.”

“Oh, that's probably the malady—”  


“No, no...well, yes _and_ no. You see, _caelestus_ malady feeds off of emotions, habits, and fears an individual already possesses. It cannot create its own emotion or ideas. It's not sentient or anything.” Coran chuckled a bit. “She's probably already harboring affection she isn't aware of yet. That's why I'm asking you, Shiro, not to mention it to her when she comes to. If she remembers it, that's a whole other story. But if not—”  
  


“Keep it a secret.” Shiro finished.

Coran patted his shoulder, comfortingly, “Good lad. I'm sorry to ask this of you. I know it's difficult.”  


“It's fine. I can handle it.” Shiro tried for a smile but came up just short of one. “Thank you, Coran. I know you're doing what's best for the princess.”  


In that moment, there came a _ding_ that alerted them that the paladins were back.  


“They made it.” Shiro grinned.  


“Let's go!” Coran said, gesturing for the paladin to follow.  


They started running toward the lion docking chamber.


	9. Bumps in the Road - 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally finished!! I might add on/edit this more later on but I just wanna get this all wrapped up and posted uwu 
> 
> Very excited to finish this! Just a couple more chapters to post!
> 
> Enjoy!

They raced back into the hallways, then Hunk stopped at an intersection, jogging in place. “Which way!?”

“Left!” Pidge instructed. If she was reading the map right, (which she was almost certain she was) the center of the encampment was a few halls away.

“Go left again, Hunk!” Pidge ordered over the loud alarm, holding her hurt shoulder as she tried to keep up with Hunk. He was very fast when he wanted to be.

Hunk, out of the blue, jolted to a stop and summoned his bayard. Pidge halted behind him as he blasted several robot guards in his way, basically screaming the whole time he did it.

Pidge covered her eyes from the bright flashing Hunk’s bayard caused.

When Hunk finished off the last of the guards, he was panting heavily and staring ahead almost blankly.

Pidge looked around him. “Well done, Hunk.” She said, impressed.

“I-I don’t know what came over me I just…I just kinda…panicked…” Hunk blinked, harshly.

The shorter paladin patted the taller. “It’s what you do best. C’mon, it’s just in that doorway. Keep your bayard out in case there are more robo-guards.”

“Okay, sure…”

Pidge and Hunk pushed on. With a few taps on her arm monitor, Pidge unlocked the door in front of them with ease. Being connected to the place sure was helpful. It would have been nice, in retrospect, to already be part of the main frame when Hunk nearly drowned. Pidge could have tapped a few buttons and they would have been well on their way. No point in reflecting on it now, though.

Hunk was the first inside the room, swinging his bayard left and right to check if there was anyone else in there. When Hunk found the coast was clear, he lowered his bayard.  Pidge slowly stepped in behind him, checking to see if her suspicions were correct. In the middle of the room they had entered, there was what appeared to be a large pump reaching deep into the ground. “I knew it!” Pidge shouted, in triumph.

“Knew what?”

Pidge chuckled to herself. “Sometimes my intuition astounds even me…”

 “Alright, Pidge.” Hunk furrowed his brow, grumpily. “Let me in on your little gremlin secrets.”

“Well, as you can see, we’re looking at some sort of pumping unit.” Pidge began, hoping Hunk would catch on.

“Yeah, it certainly looks like a pumpjack. A beam pump or ‘Big Texan’, if you’d rather call it that. So what?”

“ _So,_ that’s what caused the tectonic shifting.”

“Oohhhh, I get it...their drilling for quintessence caused the tectonic movement.” Hunk said, pointing to the drill.

Pidge nodded, “I have a hunch they pretty much abandoned this planet when it went rogue. Not worth the effort, I suppose.”

“Yeah, maybe...that would also explain why there are only so many robo-guards. A lot of them probably shut down or broke, maybe. And the remaining just followed their previous protocols.” The yellow paladin finished.

“Exactly.” Pidge made her way over to the gaping hole in the center of the room. She brought forward the detonators they took from the storage facility to the hole and looked down. “Now all _we_ have to do is bring this place down so nothing else on the planet is bothered by it.”

“Uh, maybe we should plan an escape route before that…” Hunk suggested, tapping his index fingers together nervously. “I mean if you're serious about blowing it up.”

“Don't worry, I've already set a course that’ll put us right outside.” The green paladin reassured, examining the detonators. “Now how do I turn these on…”

As Pidge figured out the gadgets, Hunk made his way over to the quintessence drill. He knocked on it with a thoughtful hum. “I wonder how this thing was supposed to work. I mean--quintessence is supposedly a mystical force generated by all living things, right? An undying energy source must be hard to harvest, physically…”

“I don't know, Hunk. Ask Coran and Allura later.” Pidge replied, paying only half her attention.

Hunk put his bayard away and reached to climb up into the huge harvester. He grunted into the seat on the top and looked down at the controls. He stared for a second then frowned. “Yeah, nope. I can't read this.”

He accommodated by pressing a big red button, assuming it would turn the machine on. Instead, with a loud clunk, it released the clamp holding the drilling line. The rope zipped down the mast so fast it burned and snapped, letting the drill pipe fall freely into the huge cavern below.

Pidge covered her head as the piece of the drill whizzed past the edge she sat at and landed with a loud thud at the bottom of the pit.

“Whoops…”

“Hunk! Quit messing with stuff!” Pidge shouted angrily, shaking her fist at him.

Hunk started climbing out of the drill, “I'm sorry, I--”

Suddenly, the ground started shaking like crazy, making Hunk fall off of the ladder and land heavily on his back. “Ow…”

“Uh oh…” Pidge backed away from the now crumbling edges of the pit. “Guess we didn't need these after all. Aw, well.”

“Pidge we gotta get outta here! The unsoundness of the earth here is way worse than we thought! We could be standing on a geyser or something! And I can't handle any more water yet!” Hunk’s eyes watered in fear.

Pidge finally activated the detonator. “Just in case.” She threw it in and activated a few more to join their friend.

“C’mon, Pidge, let’s go!” The yellow paladin leaned against the drill for support as he stood, gesturing for Pidge to follow.

“Yeah, one more second! Just a few more--” Pidge stopped when the floor beneath her legs cracked. She gasped, quickly getting to her feet and attempting to run. The first detonator she sent down went off, making her lose her footing and falling down the side of the pit.

“Pidge!” Hunk shouted, urgently. He activated his jetpack and leaped into action, arm outstretched to his companion.

Pidge screamed, her fingers gripping the crumbling rim, her good arm doing a lot better than the hurt one. Hunk reached for her and grabbed her hand yanking her out of the pit. She ended up in both of Hunk’s arms, her heart racing so loudly in her ears she couldn't hear when Hunk said something.

“What!?”

“Which way out!?” He repeated.

“The door behind the--” Pidge stopped when she saw the exit blocked off by debris. “--drill…”

Hunk dodged a rafter falling from the ceiling. “Okay, new plan.” Hunk transferred Pidge to his side. “Get on my back and try to hold on, okay?”

Pidge did so as Hunk pulled out his bayard again. “You said it goes right outside from here, right?”

Hunk readied his weapon and open fired at the wall nearest the door, blasting a new door. He put his bayard back and pushed the softened metal with his arms, wavering as the last of the detonators went off. He grabbed Pidge and shoved her through the opening then began to pull himself through.

“C’mon, Hunk! You can do it!” Pidge urged, pulling Hunk’s arm. Hunk dunked his head through and pulled the rest of his body with him.

“Ugh, I hate tight squeezes...” Hunk whined, shaking his head.

“Let’s get out of here!” Pidge said. She whirled to run in the opposite direction of the Galra base only to be stopped when she remembered there was a huge moat surrounding it. And there was only one bridge.

“We won't make it to the bridge in time!” The green paladin cried, now panicking.

“Pidge, get on my shoulders again!” Hunk commanded. He helped her up and then he turned back to the base, as close as she could get. He took several breaths, as though preparing himself for something.

“Hunk, what are you doing?” Pidge questioned, urgently.

“Something _insane, crazy, we might die_!” Hunk replied, his voice breaking only slightly.

“Wha--aah!!” Hunk took off in a sprint toward the moat, Pidge screaming the whole way.

Hunk jumped, sailing nearly halfway across the moat. As they started descending, Pidge held onto Hunk’s helmet so hard, she was nearly pulling it off.  It felt like time froze for the length of a single heartbeat—a really long heartbeat. Pidge barely had time to blink before jerking forward. Hunk activated his jetpack at the very last second to get them the rest of the way over the crevice.

In an attempted landing, Hunk lost his footing and the two paladins went tumbling to the ground, rolling and skidding to a stop.

Pidge was face down in the dirt, trying to catch her breath and get her bearings. She was mumbling as she brought herself back to reality and sat her head up. She looked forward, squinting to see what was in front of her as Hunk freaked out behind her.

“I can't _believe_ I did that--am I out of my mind!?” He shrieked, his hands waving all over the place. “I'm sorry, we could have died! Are you dead Pidge!? I feel like we actually died!”

Pidge took off her glasses, wiping the dirt off them and squeezing her eyes shut and open again to focus them. What she saw in front of her she couldn’t really believe.

“Hunk, look...over there.” Pidge pointed.

“What? Is it more Galra!?”

“No…” Pidge stood, losing her balance as the Galra base continued to crash down in the background. She leaned against a tree, shaking the adrenaline from her knees that were knocking together quite a lot. She slid her glasses back into place. “Come here…”

“I don’t think I can stand yet, so I'm gonna crawl.” Hunk said, scooting along the forest floor. Pidge pointed again as the yellow paladin joined her at her side.

“Ooh, is that..?”

“Looks like it.” Pidge smiled, approached the Citzeret flower they had come all this way for. She knelt down next to it, touching the petals. It was smaller than she thought it would be. Maybe it was just a sapling.

“Wow, it sure is pretty, huh?” Hunk marveled, sitting next to Pidge. “But how are we gonna take it? We lost the specimen container.”

“We're gonna carry it.” Pidge decided. She pulled out her bayard, its shovel-like shape making it easy to scoop up the dirt. “Cup your hands.”

“Uh, is this gonna be okay? Is the little guy gonna be okay?” Hunk cupped his hands as he was told, waiting for Pidge to finished digging the plant out.

“He’ll be fine--we’ll just put him in Lance and Keith’s container when we get back to our lions.” Pidge scooped the flower, roots and all, into her hands (keeping her damaged shoulder in mind as she did so) then into Hunk’s.

“Okay…” Hunk sighed almost in wonder. “He's so cute…”

“Don't get too attached to him--Allura’s gotta eat him so, you might as well start writing a really good farewell.” The green paladin said. She rose to her feet again, rubbing her bad shoulder and thinking how much she didn’t want to deal with it anymore. She stretched, her back cracking slightly and she groaned. “Ugh, that was too much all at once. I'm ready to go back to sleep…”

“Yeah, me too…” Hunk stood with her, carefully. They started walking back to their lions in silence, the adrenaline of the passing events finally fading and their exhaustion catching up with them.

After a little while, Hunk broke the sleepy silence.

“So, Pidge…” Hunk began. “Don't you think you went a little _overboard_ with the mini-explosives?”

Pidge gave Hunk a sideways glance. “Why?”

“Well, if I remember right, you're kind of obsessed with a) seeing things blow up, and b) dropping things into holes when we first met…” Hunk elaborated.

“The explosions thing was just a phase…” The shorter paladin scoffed, kicking her foot a bit. “I'm totally _done_ obsessing over explosions and the like…”

“Uh huh…” Hunk said, not believing it for a minute.

“It’s _true_.” Pidge insisted.

“Sure Pidge.”

“Y’know, I don’t appreciate your tone.”

“Maybe my tone would be different if you hadn’t wasted the little time we had to escape the collapsing Galra Camp of Death.” Hunk closed his eyes, haughtily.

“Okay, fine! Maybe I’m not over my ‘explosion’ and ‘throw things down a hole’ phase! So what!?” The green paladin said, defensively.  

Hunk gave her a serious, expectant look.

Pidge pouted. “Sorry…”

“You know what, it’s okay.” Hunk responds with a shrug. “I think you’ve learned your lesson. Explosions are not good, especially when combined with sensitive tectonics.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

The yellow paladin paused for a moment, making Pidge think the topic was finally dropped. But then Hunk started again.

“I just think we should look into some kind of space therapist that deals in manic and dangerous obsessions—“

“Hunk! Enough!”


	10. Hips Don't Lie - 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I can officially confirm that there are going to be 11 chapters. The last one is going to wrap the whole thing up with cured Allura!! HOORAYY!!!
> 
> THE LAST KLANCE CHAPTER  
> Ooh, I bet you guys have been waiting for this one since i left the last one off on such a cliffhanger O:
> 
> Enjoy!

Lance awoke at the bottom of the hill, slowly opening his eyes. He didn't realize he had passed out, but maybe he got knocked out when he hit his head because, damn, did it hurt. He sat up carefully, putting a hand on his temple. When he touched bare skin and hair, he noticed his helmet was gone.

He gasped, flipping his head back and forth looking for it. It must have fallen off when he went tumbling down the hill. “No, no, no!” How much of the air had he breathed while he was out? Was _he_ gonna befall into an alien sickness with no cure!? He couldn’t die this way! It wasn’t glorious enough!

The blue paladin covered his mouth to try and stop himself from breathing too much (though his fear did not help in any way slow his gasping). He stood, desperately searching the area around where he fell for his helmet. It had to be around here somewhere it just _had_ to.

“Lance!” A familiar voice called. The blue paladin looked up to see Keith sliding down the slope after him. Apparently, Lance hadn't been out that long since Keith was still here. He wouldn't know what to do if they got separated.

When the red paladin reached him, he offered him Lance’s helmet. Lance sighed with relief. So Keith found it. “Aw, man, thanks! You’re a lifesaver!”

“Don't mention it,” Keith smiled. The blue paladin secured his helmet back on his head, breathing in deeply to try and clear his lungs of bad air. “That creature got away before I could get it. But when you fell it became a little less important. I'm glad you're okay.”

“Uh...thanks…” Lance replied, furrowing his brow. That was a weird way to put it. “We should get going.” Lance mindlessly grabbed at the straps that were supposed to be around his shoulders but was unable to. He looked down and saw that they were not there. “Wait--where’s the pack!?”

“About that…” Keith started, “I think the Cizer took it…”

“It _what_!?” Lance shrieked. “What do we do now!? Even if we find a flower, we won't have anywhere to put one!”

“Lance, relax!” Keith gripped his shoulders, forcing Lance to look him in the eye. His gaze was sincere and, surprisingly, Lance felt the tension in his shoulders lessen. Something was off. Keith was being nice. Was it the near death experience that brought out the kindness in him? “I think I know where they went. C’mon, this way.”

Things were already weird, but in one _single_ moment, they went from weird to downright _strange_. Keith decided to _lace his fingers_ with Lance’s and drag him along behind him like a schoolgirl excited to show her boyfriend the sunset. Alarm bells went off in the blue paladin’s brain, emergency red like a fire engine. There was no way Lance would be caught _dead_ holding _Keith_ ’ _s_ hand.

“Woah, woah, woah!” Lance pulled away, taking a few steps back. Keith paused too, looking back at Lance like _he_ was the one acting wack. “Why are you holding my hand!?”

It was then Keith said something that hit Lance’s heart like a semi-truck.

“You...don't want to..?”

He just about fell over on impact. It was simultaneously the cutest and most out-of-the-ordinary thing Lance had ever heard Keith say. Combine that with the most aberrant and saddest puppy dog eyes he had ever looked at, and you got yourself the definition of the word ‘capricious’.

Out of nowhere, Lance felt himself melting into the begging look in the red paladin’s eyes. He’d never seen Keith act this way. He was acting so open to the blue paladin and it was almost like Lance woke up in an alternate reality.

In that single moment, the alarm bells went quiet.

“No, of-of course I...want to.” Lance finally said, “I’m just thinking I hit my head too hard, is all…”

Keith smiled and stepped closer, getting on his tiptoes to pretend to kiss Lance’s head. There was no way he could really since they were both wearing their helmets, but he made a kissing noise like ‘mmm-muah!’ that made up for it. Lance’s face flushed bright red and his eyes widened so much they felt like they were gonna pop out of his skull. “All better?”

The blue paladin blinked, smiling dopily. “A huh...a hundred percent…!” He gave a thumbs up and Keith gave one back, taking his hand once more and starting on his way again.

If this _was_ a dream, Lance wasn’t sure if he wanted to wake up.

* * *

 

“So...Keith...h-how do you know where we’re going again?” Lance asked, still unable to get over the fact that he’s _actually_ holding hands with his best rival. And more so that he was enjoying it.

“I'm...not exactly sure. I'm just going the way I saw them go last. I know they ran this way.” Keith explained. Lance pursed his lips.

“Weird for you to say that.”

“And why’s that?” Keith asked, not looking at Lance.

“Well--you’re practically _always_ certain.” Lance laughed, lightly. Keith looked up at him this time.

“Am I?” The red paladin looked back down at the ground, his eyebrows knitted. “I've actually got a lot of doubts, to be honest.”

“About what?” Lance asked, curiously.

“Well...for starters, I’m not sure we can find the flower before it's too late...this planet’s huge.”

“Hey, don't worry about that. Even if _we_ don't, Hunk and Pidge are looking too. That's a reliable team.” Lance comforted.

“Are _we_?” Keith stopped walking, suddenly. “I didn't want to be teamed with you in the first place.”

Lance tried not to let that hurt him.

“But…” Lance lifted their intertwined fingers. “...we’re holding _hands_.”

This made Keith laugh, and Lance noticed for the first time just how cute Keith was when he smiled. Oh, boy...did his heart just skip a beat?

“Yeah. When I thought you were hurt...I got worried.” They had stopped walking. “I didn't know if you were alive or dead. I was gonna lose my mind.”

“Geez, I didn't know you cared so much.” Lance rubbed the back of his neck. It was getting hotter.

Keith smiled again, and the blue paladin suddenly got a bad feeling. Why?Because Coran’s warning’s echoed in his head, _They can turn into and act just like your closest comrade and you’d never be the wiser._

Oh, of course. When Keith was finally being agreeable and _cute_ it had to be an imposter. Lance couldn't believe that. He didn't _want_ to. Not when they were finally getting along.

Why did Lance have to be the wiser?

“Is something wrong, Lance?” What Lance assumed was Keith asked. Lance cleared his throat.

“‘Course not, let’s keep going.”

Lance took a step forward only to have his foot sink into the mud. “Wha--!?” He grasped for Keith, thinking it was some sort of alien quicksand. Keith gripped his forearms to support him until the brunet was back on his feet.

Lance looked down as he shook his foot of the mud. “Ew, ew, _ew_!” He paused upon seeing a small creek under his feet. “Wait--was that always there?”

“Uh, yeah? Where do you think all the fog went?” Keith responded, putting his hands on his hips with a smirk on his lips.

Now that he mentioned it, they weren't lost in the fog at the moment. In fact, there was no fog near them. The area was completely clear. Why hadn't Lance noticed that until now? He was probably too distracted by Keith.

Lance kneeled down to look at the water closer. He put his hand in it and rubbed his fingers together. It felt just like the leaf juice he got covered in. So it was water in the plants? But this water wasn't glowing. Maybe the glowing was a reaction with something in the plants. Man, he wished he could talk to Pidge or Coran. He'd _kinda_ like to know what was up with this fog stuff. Y’know--scientifically.

“Lance, over here!” Keith called. The brunet shot a look around for Keith, panicking at the sound of his voice’s distance. If he lost track of _this_ Keith he might not find the real one. Or if this really _was_ Keith, he didn't want to lose him anyway.

Lance spotted him at the edge of the forest. “What? What is it?”

“I think I found something. C’mon!” Keith disappeared under the trees, and Lance darted after him.

“Wait up!”

Lance jogged into a clearing. The murk surrounded him again and he began to feel uneasy. Keith was nowhere in sight and the paladin could barely see the ground. “Keith…?” He called, softly.

“Lance, look.” Keith’s voice sounded from behind him. Lance whirled around to find Keith sitting on a low-hanging branch of a nearby tree.

“Keith, wha--?”

Keith pointed to the ground and the blue paladin turned to look at what it was. The flower. Probably a trap flower.

“ _Oh…_ ” Lance said, slowly rolling his head back to the red paladin, “I am _not_ touching that.”

“I found it, so you have to test it.” Keith teased, swinging his legs.

“Uh huh…” Lance replied, raising an eyebrow. “But isn't it ‘finders touchers’?”

“That's not a thing.”

“Uhm, last I checked it was.”

Keith scoffed and jumped down from the branch. “C’mon. If it _is_ a trap, I can just cut you loose.” He gestured to his bayard. Lance sighed.

“Alright, alright…”

Lance approached the Cizeret flower, hoping beyond hope it wouldn’t be a trap. He wasn’t really a guy for surprises unless they were _good_ surprises. On the one hand, finding the plant would help him get off this planet, save the princess, and call it a night. On the other hand, being strung up in something that was named _boa vines_ did _not_ sound like a good surprise. It sounded horribly painful and borderline deadly.

Still, what did Lance have to lose? If it was a fake, Keith would cut him free and they could continue searching.

Lance approached the plant and let his finger-tips brush the top of the plant. The blue paladin closed his eyes, waiting for something to happen. After a calm moment of nothing, he peeked to see if he was maybe already dead. When he discovered he wasn’t, his face split into a grin.

“Oh, Keith!” He sang, shaking his hips to some imaginary victory tune. “Guess who found the flower for the princess? _Moi_! That’s right!”

He decided he spoke too soon when a loud snapping sound filled his ears, and suddenly Lance was suspended in the air, twisted in deep green vines. He groaned. “Aw, _man_ …”

“What was that again? I didn't hear you.” Keith’s teasing voice sounded from right below the blue paladin. Lance wiggled, trying to free himself, but the vines squeezed tighter.

“Oh, no...Keith, get me out!”

Keith didn’t respond, looking up at Lance expectantly. Lance sighed.  

“Okay, okay, it wasn’t real. Are you happy now?” The brunet gave, frowning deeply. “Just cut me free already.”

“Hmm…” Keith hummed, “I don’t think I want to…”

“Keith, c’mon. This isn’t funny.”

“It’s a little funny.” Keith crossed his arms and Lance was about to roll his eyes at the inevitable ‘right hip-jut’ but it didn’t happen. Lance blinked, not believing what he was seeing. The red paladin was leaning on his left side. That just confirmed every doubt that bubbled to the surface from when he fell down that hill.

“Who-who are you!?” Lance panicked, struggling more against the vines vice grip. “What did you do to Keith?”

“What?” Fake-Keith raised an eyebrow, straightening. “How did you know?”

“Uh, cause...I know my buddy…?” Lance offered, “Now where is he?”

“Well, your boyfriend’s probably dead by now.” He replied, removing his helmet as if what he said was the most casual thing since T-shirts.

“‘Dead’!?” Lance’s heart raced as adrenaline rushed through him. “Wait a second--‘boyfriend’!?”

“Yeah--he liked you a lot…” Fake-Keith explained, “Didn’t you know that?”

“How could _you_ know that?” Lance would’ve laughed if he could breathe. “Did he tell you?”

“Nope. It’s all up here.” The Cizer tapped himself on the head.

The blue paladin gasped dramatically. “No way--is that...Keith’s _actual body_!?”

Fake-Keith gave Lance a very realistic ‘are you stupid’ look the real Keith would _totally_ make. This told Lance that he wasn’t right. “Of course it’s not, fool. I took his memories by eating his hair.”

Lance was both relieved and disgusted. “Then, how do you know he’s dead?”

“Because my brother’s taking care of that.” Fake-Keith grinned. “I’m sure he made for a tasty meal.”

Lance’s heart sank. ‘Tasty meal’? He couldn’t believe this was happening. There was no way Keith was dead. He just couldn’t be. Maybe Keith had miraculously escaped and was coming to find him. Maybe they could leave, safe and sound. Maybe, if Lance had been smarter and realized this wasn’t Keith sooner, he could have saved him.

“Don’t worry, you don’t have to grieve for him.” The Cizer said, adjusting the black gloves on his hands. “You’ll be dead soon too.”

“I’d say the same about you.” Someone’s voice sounded, suddenly, and Lance looked up to see the real Keith driving his bayard through Fake-Keith. If Lance wasn’t so happy to see him, he would have had more time to realize just how daunting it was to see Keith stabbing himself in the back.

Fake-Keith crumbled to the ground, dead.

“Keith!” Lance strained out, delightedly. “You’re alive!”

“So are you!” Keith responded, and Lance was graced with one of Keith’s amazing smiles. The red paladin immediately ran to Lance’s side, raking his sword through the boa vines to free the brunet. The blue paladin gasped as his lungs weren't being crushed anymore. Lance landed on his knees, with support from Keith. It was probably the elation of seeing his comrade alive that made him do it, but as soon as he shook the excess vine from his arms, Lance threw off his and Keith’s helmets and pulled the black haired into a kiss.

So many questions erupted when he saw Keith, but right now, Lance felt like this is what he had to do. An excessive amount of emotion went into this embrace--Lance’s fear, regret, and a new-found interest in Keith poured out as the blue paladin’s lips pressed against Keith’s. And to his delight, the red paladin didn't pull back from the kiss.

In fact, he deepened it.

Lance sighed, running his fingers through Keith’s hair. He breathed in Keith familiar scent--one he still hadn't grown accustomed to, but he was looking forward to doing so. Lance thought he’d rather this moment not end. It was so unexpectedly nice. _Keith_ was so unexpectedly nice. Even if the ‘Keith’ Lance was with before wasn't real, it didn't seem fake either. The Cizer _did_ say he took from Keith’s memory. Maybe Keith wasn't as bad as he thought?

They separated and Lance untangled his fingers from Keith’s black locks. Keith's hair was nice.

The red paladin bashfully brushed his bangs behind his ear, biting his bottom lip. Real Keith was suddenly so much cuter. Lance wondered if he’d ever been kissed before. With lips like that? Probably.

“So, um...how’d you escape? I mean--how’d you know it wasn't me?” Lance asked, slowly.

“Oh...he, uh…” Keith averted his eyes. “He wasn't... _like_ you. He wasn't, for one, thinking enough…?”

“Wait--you're saying what gave away that it wasn't me was the fact that he wasn't _smart_ enough to be me?” Lance grinned.

“Not--well--”

Lance laughed, “I _knew_ it!”

The red paladin scoffed as he got to his feet. “Well, what about you? How’d _you_ find out?”

“Of course it was--” Lance bit his tongue. Wouldn't it be kind of insulting to Keith if Lance said he only recognized him by, “...the way you _stand_?”

“What?”

“The way you stand when you cross your arms…” The brunet continued, glancing up to see Keith doing the exact thing he was describing. “Like that! You lean on your right hip!”

Keith looked down, his eyebrows furrowing. He straightened, his cheeks reddening but Lance wasn't sure it was out of embarrassment. “You mean after all this time the only thing that gave away it _wasn’t me_ was my _hip!?_ ”

“Well, I just thought you were so worried I was dead your sleeping feelings for me woke up!” The paladin defended. He finally stood up, only to be met with a whack to the back of his head.

“I think you breathed too much toxic air!” He stooped to grab their helmets off the ground. He shoved Lance’s into his chest, knocking wind out of him. “Here, dummy. Before you get any other stupid ideas in your head.”

“Are you _that_ mad about it?”

“No!” Keith said, maybe a little too quickly.

“Then what's the big deal!?”

Keith didn't say anything, just started walking away, out of the fog. Lance followed him.

“C’mon, Keith! Just a second ago I was talking to _fake_ you and you were being so open with me.” Lance complained.

“That's because--!” Keith stopped mid-sentence and whirled on the blue paladin, his expression reading as more determined then ticked off, “If you really wanna know what it is, it's not that I'm mad it's because you _noticed_ something like that! It's just so--”

“‘So…?’”

“Embarrassing! How can someone even _notice_ something like that!? It's stupid! You embarrass me!”

“Okay, _wow_. Tell me how you really feel.” Lance said, sarcastically.

“I'm not!” Keith confessed. He put a hand on his head and took a deep breath. “I'm--actually really _flattered_ you’d notice something like that…no one's ever, y’know, taken the time to _notice_ little things about me.”

At this, Lance was pleasantly surprised. He didn't expect Keith to say something like _that._ Maybe Cizer Keith wasn't too far off the money.

Suddenly, Lance’s helmet crackled. “La--nce? Can you hear-r-r me?”

“Hunk? Is that you?” Lance responded. Static followed.

“Meet us back--lions--” Hunk crackled back. Lance turned to Keith.

“They want us back? Did they find the flower?” Keith asked. Lance shrugged, a smile growing on his face.

“We can only hope so. Now let's get out of here.”

* * *

 

When Lance and Keith finally made it back to the clearings where their lions were, they spotted the other two paladins across the field through the fog. Lance started running toward them, never being so happy to see them in his life.

“Hunk! Pidge! Boy, are we glad to see you!” He wrapped his arms around Hunk’s neck before he paused and backed away. “Wait--you're not aliens in disguise, are you? What's my favorite color?”

“What? No. Deep space blue. Why?” Hunk responded quickly.

“Alright, threat neutralized.” Lance suddenly noticed some weird goop on Hunk’s helmet. “Uh...what's on your head?”

“Long story short, my helmet kinda broke.”

“Wow, must've been some adventure.” Lance looked down at Hunk’s hands because he noticed he was holding something. A tiny gasp escaped his mouth and he held his hands up to his face. “Oh my goodness, is this the little Citzeret guy?”

“Yup, that’s him.” Hunk smiled proudly. “I named him Emilio after the aeronautics engineer cause he makes my heart soar…”

Lance laughed, “He’s so cute…I love you, Emilio…thank you for existing so we can get off this planet and never come back!” Lance smooched the plant’s leaves.

“Can we make out with the plant once we leave?” Pidge grumbled. Keith approached her.

“What happened to your shoulder?” He asked.

“Fell on it. What happened to Lance’s suit?”

“Plant juice.” The blue paladin frowned.

“Pfft, you mean you didn’t just squeeze the stem shut so it wouldn’t leak?” Pidge teased, high-and-mighty.

“I--!”

“Guys, can we argue about this later?” Hunk interrupted, dancing back and forth on his feet. “Pidge is still hurt and I really gotta go to the bathroom. Plus, Emilio wants to go home too! Listen to him…he’s crying…” Hunk head the plant close to his face, frowning.

Keith took off the only remaining specimen pack and tapped it open. Hunk placed Emilio into the container and it glowed, sustaining the plant's life like Coran said it was made to do.

Keith hoisted it onto his back again. “Alright, let’s head back.”

“Oh, Keith…can I take him?” Hunk asked, holding out his arms. “I feel like he’d feel safer with me since I carried him all this way.”

“He’s…just a plant…” Keith countered, furrowing his brow.

“Just let him have it, Keith.” The blue paladin said, snaking an arm around Keith’s shoulders. “If Hunk wants to play dad to the plant, let him play dad.”

Keith looked down, as though having his face so close to Lance’s face was difficult. “Yeah, fine. Whatever works.”

“What happened to you guys? You seem to be getting along better.” Pidge commented, a slight grin on her lips.

Lance and Keith blinked in surprise, Lance almost immediately moving away.

At the same time they said:

“I don’t know what you mean—”

“A lot can happen on a rogue planet—”

They looked at each other, then blushed and looked away.

“Uh huh…let’s just get out of here. I’ll bug you about it when I’ve had more sleep.” Pidge turned toward her lion and it activated, opening the pilot chamber.

“Yeah, let’s all talk later over breakfast. We’ve gotta get Emilio to Allura so he can do his thing.” Hunk followed in Pidge’s footsteps, cradling the plant container in his arms.

“So, I guess we should get going…” Keith said, after a bit.

“Yeah…” Lance rubbed the back of his neck.

“This was…” Keith cleared his throat. “…interesting.”

“Sure was…” The taller pressed his lips together, as they suddenly started tingling.

“We should probably get to our lions and act like everything’s normal…” Keith decided.

“Yeah, yep that would probably be best.” The both started on their way, Keith moving like his legs were jelly and Lance marching like he was a robot.

“Boy, I can’t wait to sleep somewhere where _Keith_ isn’t!” Lance said, deliberately over the intercom. Keith tried not to laugh.

“Yeah, good riddance. This was worse than the time I was forced to ride with you in the Blue Lion!”  Keith countered.

“Stop flirting over the intercom! Let’s _go!_ ” Pidge demanded, a little more than annoyed.

“Yes, ma’am!” Lance responded, letting a little laugh escape his mouth as he entered Blue in a hurry.


End file.
